"There's probably not been a cyclist since Merckx who has had such a long and successful career" - Not in Pogacar, but Jens Voigt does sees Merckx's heir in modern cycling

In 2024, Tadej Pogacar put in one of the greatest individual seasons in cycling history. As such, the Slovenian has been drawing comparisons with the great Eddy Merckx of late. According to Jens Voigt though, not Pogacar but someone else stands out as Merckx heir in the peloton.

"The next person that comes to mind is Marianne Vos," explains the 43-year-old German in his reflections of the 2024 season for Eurosport. "If ever an athlete, or in this case a female athlete, deserved the attribute "GOAT" - alongside Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan or Eddy Merckx - then it is the Dutchwoman."

Adding 7 victories to her palmares in 2024, including notable successes such as Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Dwars door Vlaanderen, Amstel Gold Race and two stages of the Vuelta a Espana, the 37-year-old's career victory tally now stands at the incredibly impressive number of 255 on the road alone. And with triumphs across multiple disciplines increasing her overall tally much higher, Voigt sees Vos as the true heir of Merckx in modern cycling.

"In the spring she won Dwars door Vlaanderen convincingly, which was her 250th victory (!) and there were a few more to come in the rest of the season. She is a two-time Olympic champion and fourteen-time world champion: on the road, on the track, in cross and in gravel," Voigt, himself a rider with 59 career victories, concludes. "There has probably not been a cyclist since Merckx who has had such a long and successful career, so one of my highlights this year was seeing Vos return to winning ways."

Excitingly, Vos might not yet be done in 2024. After nearly two years away from cyclocross, the eight-time world champion is set to return to the field on Sunday in Besancon, potentially working towards the Cyclocross World Championships in early 2025.