Finally Tadej Pogacar was able to lift the Endless Trophy in Rome, surrounded by his entire team who dressed in pink for the last stage. Friends and relatives were all under the Colosseum, wearing the pink of that shirt, which represents the winner of the Giro d’Italia.
«Maybe I’ll understand what I did in a few days. I need a few days of rest first and perhaps when I am more relaxed, I will begin to understand the scope of my undertaking.”
For the Slovenian champion, this was the first time at the pink race and as a great favourite, he left all his rivals behind and finished with an advantage of almost 10 minutes over the second classified. «It was very nice to come to Italy and race the Giro, I am very happy for this experience. It was great to see many Pogi Team shirts on the course. There were a lot of guys who came to support us and it’s nice to see their participation. Cycling must also be a game and as long as it is a game everything is fine.”
For the Slovenian there will now be the Tour de France and he did not want to say when he will return to Italy to try to win the pink jersey again. «I could return to the Giro, of course I would like to, but let’s see how the rest of the season goes first. It was a beautiful experience, a beautiful ride, a beautiful moment. He will probably return in a few years, I don’t know when, but I will certainly return.”
The time to rest has not yet arrived for the Slovenian champion: «Now there are still the last efforts to make and in two or three days I will be able to rest and then I’ll think about the Tour which for me is a very important commitment.”
The champion in the pink jersey is 25 years old and in his palmares there are already three grand tours won and this year he could also win the fourth.
«Each race is a different experience, during the three weeks you grow and perhaps these three weeks were another step forward as a man. After the Giro I’ll see how I feel and if I am able to grow again. As a runner however I felt strong, it was a positive three weeks, I was always in the place I wanted to be, with the distance I had decided I had to have over my rivals. I understood many things, I had a good feeling with my body. Now I’ll rest a bit and then I’ll try to improve to see where I’m at in terms of the Tour.”
Pogacar knows Italy well, but he arrived in Rome yesterday for the first time. «It was my first time in Rome and having given Slovenia the second consecutive victory in the last two editions of the Giro I think is a very beautiful thing. LRoglic won last year in Rome and even if we are part of different teams, we often talk but almost never about cycling because we can’t always focus on our sport. On the podium I wanted to bring two flags, one of Slovenia and another worthy of the United Arab Emirates, because it is the nation of my team».
Pogacar doesn’t know how far he can go, but he wants to look towards the future and still try to improve. «I want to see if I can still improve and we’ll see what sensations I will have. I am very happy with how my parents raised me and if I became like this it is also thanks to them.”
