Tadej Pogacar doesn’t just want to win the Tour de France. The overall leader also has a long-term project and wants to break the record of the best sprinter in cycling history.
The overall victory in the Tour de France is a priority for Tadej Pogacar, but in the long term the cycling star is aiming for a completely different mark. The 25-year-old wants to break Mark Cavendish’s stage win record. The British sprinter celebrated his 35th stage victory in this year’s Tour, leaving the legendary Eddy Merckx behind.
Three stages per tour
“When I saw Mark Cavendish winning all those stages, I thought he was from another planet. That’s unattainable. But if you chase your dreams, you can catch them,” said Pogacar. So far, the two-time Tour winner has 13 stage wins to his name, and the next one could follow on Sunday on the Plateau de Beille.
Cavendish had 15 victories at the same age, and in terms of strength, Pogacar could at least match that during this Tour. If the Giro winner can maintain his level for another seven years and win an average of around three stages per Tour, he will make history at the age of 32. So far, Pogacar has achieved roughly this average, and has only had fewer than three stage victories once in five Tours.
Politics as a factor
This year, the mountain finishes of stages 15, 19 and 20 could be added, and a win in the very high-profile final time trial is anything but out of the question. He already set a record on Saturday. Only Marco Pantani, like Pogacar, won four mountain finishes of the highest category. Fitting, because this year he wants to follow in the footsteps of the Italian, who in 1998 was the last professional to celebrate the double of Giro and Tour.
One of the most important helpers this year is Nils Politt from Cologne. He even received extra praise from Pogacar. “What he does is unbelievable. He works all day at the front, without him and the other team mates this would not be possible,” said Pogacar.
Source: Stern
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