"We're racing practically a stone's throw from his house" - Matej Mohoric on Pogacar's disappointment to miss European Championships
Cycling
Tadej Pogacar had the opportunity of racing and potentially winning an European Championship title in Sencur, Slovenia. On his old training roads, the former World Champion was disappointed to have experienced it from the sidelines - as described by compatriot Matej Mohoric.
Slovenia is a country that has historically not had many big names in the sport of cycling, but in the 2020's has fully taken over it. From Olympic to World and European titles; From multiple Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España wins, and more...
Yet the 2026 European Championships marked a very important step for the country, as it hosted for the first time an edition of the European Championships. The event would boost the country's image in the international sports scene, and had Tadej Pogacar as the focal point.
World and European Championships venues, like the Olympic Games, are decided years ahead. Slovenia has prepared the Europeans in consultation with Pogacar, with the road race passing by his hometown of Komenda and finishing in Sencur, next to a climb where the Tour de France champion would train in his younger years.
Pogacar was at the Europeans, but due to the injuries suffered at the Vuelta a España, he could no more than being a spectator - and attraction - during this Sunday's event.
Matej Mohoric has been close to Matej Mohoric for plenty years
Tadej Pogacar's major disappointment, as seen by Matej Mohoric
Mohoric, who has been teaming up with the UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider for plenty years, has no doubt of the major disappointment that Pogacar's inability to race at the time being has been.
"Tadej is incredibly passionate about cycling; he doesn't race for any reason other than wanting to show what he's made of and to win every race," Mohoric said, as reported by Ekipa.
"Especially when it's a championship on home soil. We're racing practically a stone's throw from his house, so I can imagine his frustration and his intense desire to compete. He is likely even more disappointed than the rest of us, passionate fans and followers of the sport that we are".
The team still had Primoz Roglic as a contender for a medal in Sencur, but the veteran was not able to achieve a top result for the home crowd during this Sunday's headliner. The time trial on Wednesday provides another opportunity.
"It’s a huge shame. You could say fate always has a better plan than we do, but I really don't see the point of it turning out this way. I, too, would have liked to see Tadej at the start line".
Asked why the decision was taken to keep Pogacar out of the race, the answer was clear for the Bahrain - Victorious rider: "Because they are protecting his health, it’s as simple as that."
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- The Festina Affair, Operación Puerto, Eufemiano Fuentes, Michele Ferrari, Armstrong, Contador, Landis, Ullrich, and Pantani were all great shows. Now Pogačar, "The Greatest Showman" of all.
vannpelt05-10-2026 - People are loosing it over UAE how dominant they are. First they create the best rider ever, now other teams captains cant even deal with their domestiques. Del Toro pogs dom better than evenepoel at every hilly course in the world..Its crazy work that team. That McNulty also won WC just goes to show how insane they are. Their the best in history its very clear aswell wether or not i dont like em ive never seen anything remotely close to them. Think ppl better off just accepting facts instead of delusional alternative realities. Touch grass, get a job and enjoy the show instead.miguel05-10-2026
- PogiSloFans, it is just a possibility with the unfortunate reality that Pog is having to face. He can't yet know how he will react to more intense training with his concussion; and that has consequences for the rest of someone's life.Hills3305-10-2026
- Those are your prerogatives but just like you’ve disqualified me (and yet continue to engage), I disqualified her as interesting to me for having done what for me is unacceptable in her position (different e.g. to someone put in a position to feel they have no choice, so unless I discover something in the media about her having been blackmailed by her agent or employer I will stick to my position). I am also not interested in researching good things Hitler might have done or any talents he had as these claims rarely come from a source I could have respect for. Sorry to use an extreme to make a point but maybe you get it better put like that. Extremism/radicalism in any form can be acceptable or ok on an individual level (when it has no effect on outsiders) but NOT societally.Mistermaumau05-10-2026
- Pretty unclear what you are saying here, especially bringing skin colour into it for no apparent reason, but you do bring up an interesting issue although only from one point of view (father, not mother). So I ask you to think through this. I expect you’d be proud of your daughter/wife/sister if she’d tell you shéd made it « big » (obviously not if comparing to those with 1000s of x higher worth) financially (not a risky assumption based on the importance you’ve shown money has for you). Would you still be as proud to discover it was through showing herself naked publicly, for a betting company to attract male users easier? I expect many fathers (not averse to looking at naked females) will have a slightly different view on this than mothers but that this difference might drop when it concerns one of their own. Now, maybe in today’s morally confused and paradoxical society this might still be considered acceptable by some (let’s also not forget sole form of incest happens in 15-20% of families to remember how many weird men (and to a lesser degree women) there are, so in order for you to think this through properly and not through the societal pressure to conform to contemporary « normality « you might feel under lets skip the next message by directly considering the same question in the context of historical momentum. Would you have given the same answer in your grandparents’ time? Do you see how things have evolved since (regardless of whether we call that progress or not) even if it’s never linear (70’s being far less prudish than a few subsequent , depending on which generation you asked obviously). Now, fast forward another decade or generation or more of the same momentum and consider yourself a father when every young girl will see a financial opportunity to make it big through platforms like Onlyfans, Discord, Coco (and probably hundreds more unknown to mainstream media, worse even), you’d still be happy to defend your child for her choices, behaviour and the example she sets for others? Girls like this are just germinating and facilitating new Epsteins by lowering the barrier for (female, surprise, surprise) nudity.Mistermaumau05-10-2026
- Hey Jumpin Johnny, it would also be nice for you to keep your foolish mouth shut every once in a while. You're almost as bad as that Trump redneck, frieder3.PogiSloFans05-10-2026
- WTF? Retirement? We still have plenty of enjoyment ahead of us with his victories.MajorPayne05-10-2026
- WTF are you talking about? What retirement? Next year Pogi will be better then ever... his goal is to prove that, to show te whole world who is the "boss"!!! Capish?PogiSloFans05-10-2026
- Fair play, doing every level in RR and ITT is quite a feat.wrsty05-10-2026
- You must have missed yesterdays and todays Italian races where UAE 'subs' didn't win!frieders305-10-2026
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