Thijs Zonneveld "tired" of Tadej Pogacar's dominance: "The superiority was way too great. I got tired of him"
Cycling
Those who thought Tadej Pogacar was going to attack on Comma di Sormano, 50 kilometers from the finish line can tick off their bingo cards. I personally thought he'd go even sooner, but the Slovenian let us enjoy a brief ray of hope with Remco Evenepoel right on his wheel for a... moment. The rest is history.
As ever, praise of Pogacar's performance came from all directions. Thijs Zonneveld is no exception. In his column for the AD newspaper, he writes that he is a bit done with the dominant world champion. "However beautiful his solos are, however special his season was: the superiority was too great," he states.
Zonneveld wouldn't mind had that World Champion waited to blow up the race a bit later:
"Very, very, very possibly he will wait until the last climb. Or else the sprint with a handful of others. It will still be somewhat exciting. But let's be honest: that chance is just as big as it raining sprinkles on Saturday. It is very likely that Tadej Pogacar will go fifty kilometers before the finish. Or else at eighty. And if he feels like it, he will have flown before the broadcast starts."
Just like in Liège, just like in the Giro d'Italia, just like in the Tour de France and just like at the World Championships: it was a one-man show. "Again. He has given so many of those this year that you sometimes feel like you are watching a repeat of last week or the week before. No matter how bizarrely good Mathieu van der Poel and Remco Evenepoel were at times: there is no doubt about who is the best cyclist in this galaxy."
"From a historical and sporting perspective, Pogacar's cycling year in 2024 will be one to remember forever," Zonneveld was briefly full of praise. That quickly turned into irritation. "Almost everything went well. He didn't get sick, he didn't fall, he wasn't unlucky at decisive moments, he never missed the beat. His basic level was so absurdly and scorchingly high that we didn't even realize whether he was in shape or in top shape. He never got tired. I did. Of him. And I don't think I'm the only one."
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