Tadej Pogacar Secures Historic Triple Crown with World Title

Tadej Pogacar showcased an incredible solo ride in Switzerland, securing his first world road race title. With this victory, he achieved his first world road race title. He also became only the third cyclist ever to win the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and world title in the same year. Notably, the 26-year-old caught his competitors off guard, breaking away with 100 kilometers remaining in the 273.9-kilometer route in Zurich.

As a result, he pulled ahead of Belgium’s Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel. Additionally, reigning world champion Mathieu van der Poel struggled to keep pace in the peloton. After bridging the gap to a breakaway group, Pogacar surged to the front on his own with 50 kilometers remaining. He maintained his lead in the final kilometers while the rest of the field fought for the minor medals.

“I put a lot of pressure on myself for today,” said Tadej Pogacar, a three-time Tour de France winner. “After a perfect season, it was really a big goal to win a world championship, and I just can’t believe it happened.” Moreover, Pogacar’s victory marked the first time since Stephen Roche in 1987 that a male cyclist claimed the ‘Triple Crown,’ with Belgian legend Eddy Merckx being the first to achieve it in 1974.

Additionally, Annemiek van Vleuten of the Netherlands is the only woman to have accomplished this feat, achieving it in 2022. In terms of performance, Pogacar finished the race in six hours, 27 minutes and 30 seconds, crossing the line 34 seconds ahead of Australia’s Ben O’Connor, who secured silver after breaking away from the chasing group.

Meanwhile, Van der Poel finished third, 58 seconds behind after winning a sprint for bronze against Latvia’s Toms Skujins. World time-trial champion Evenepoel placed fifth while Swiss rider Marc Hirschi took sixth. Finally, Scotland’s Oscar Onley, 21 was the first British cyclist to finish coming in a respectable 16th place.