Will Primoz Roglic realise a career-defining day? - Slovenian declares good form before European Championships start on home turf
Cycling
Primoz Roglic is dreaming about a potentially career-defining day at the European Championships, starting the elite men''s road race on home turf as one of the favourites to take victory - even if he remains tight-lipped on just how strong his ambitions are.
Fronting the Slovenian team at the start in Ljubljana, Roglic will race on home roads less than 100 kilometres from his home town on Sunday. He faces stern opposition in the likes of Remco Evenepoel and Giulio Ciccone, but his Montreal World Championships form signals that he could be a deciding factor on a parcours suited to his attributes.
Describing his privilege to be riding a home major championships, Roglic admitted his joy at being part of the race - signalling that he believes he's got some gas left in the tank to perform despite finishing the Vuelta a Espana three weeks ago.
"Yeah definitely, I mean you know I feel privileged and honoured actually to be part of these things and yeah just happy, happy to be here and happy to be part of this," Roglic told CyclingProNet before the start.
"I mean I hope so [compete for the win, Ed.], there is still something left, we will see but no matter how, yeah like I said, we'll be just privileged to do every kilometre today at home."
Primoz Roglic
Roglic tight-lipped over prospects in Slovenia
Asked about his prospects of victory, the 36-year-old remains tight-lipped while indicating that the legs feel good on Sunday morning: "I feel good and I mean, you know, I always say if you have the legs then every parcours is good, so we will see."
A victory in Sencur would resemble a resounding day in a career of massive achievements. The five-time Grand Tour winner has enjoyed seismic days throughout his career including a win at Liege-Bastogne-Liege, fifteen Vuelta a Espana stage wins, four Giro d'Italia stage wins and three Tour de France stages. As well as Giro and Vuelta overall wins, he has podiumed the Tour.
However, in an 18 months that has seen Roglic's winning touch wain with victories fewer and his position in Red Bull slide given his advancing years, a second place at the Vuelta and a surprising World Championships signal that the Roglic of old is still there.
A first major championships win in five years and his transfer future
In fact, a win at the European Championships would be his first major championships win since becoming Olympic time trial champion in 2021. For the veteran, there's no better place to do it than on home roads.
His transfer future for 2027 is also yet to be confirmed. Red Bull have confirmed his planned exit when his contract expires, but his destination is not yet locked in.
Tudor Pro Cycling appear to be leading the chase but there's also been interest from Lotto-Intermarche and Pinarello Q36.5 among others.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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