Vanmarcke believes Primoz Roglic's chances of still winning a Tour: "it will have to be the right scenario to put all the puzzle pieces together"

Primoz Roglic has for some years been a main figure at the Tour de France. After seemingly racing a perfect three weeks in 2020, he dramatically lost the race on the final competitive day, and has since suffered with crashes and mishaps in the following years.

“It's early to write someone off after two failed innings. Roglic has already won so much. I also know him as an ex-teammate, he is known as a 'fighter'," Vanmarcke told Wielerflits. He also pointed out an important difference between the Slovenian and most of the peloton: "Note that he started cycling when he was 27. I think he should definitely be given the benefit of the doubt".

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Roglic turned pro at 23 - not 27 as the Belgian suggested - and has since turned into one of the most versatile riders in the peloton, aswell as one of the most successful. Despite his heartbreaks at the Tour de France, he has won three consecutive editions of the Vuelta a España (which he will be defending soon) and several other high level wins in both stage-races and one-day races.

Vanmarcke used the example of a recent Tour de France winner to support his point on the Jumbo-Visma rider: “Cadel Evans also won the Tour at the age of 34 when everyone wrote him off, but it will have to be the right scenario to put all the puzzle pieces together to drop.”

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