Pogačar Riding Romandie Was Unexpected. Here’s What It Says About His Future

The Tour de Romandie seemed to many to be a surprising race for Tadej Pogačar to target.

It may be a WorldTour contest but riding it for the first time in his career was so unexpected that the race organizer was forced to deny that an appearance fee was paid.

“Absolutely not,” race organizer Richard Chassot told Wielerflits this week when the question of a financial incentive was raised.

“They have never asked me to do that, and by the way, we also don’t have the capacity for it. A long time ago, I did receive a request to pay a sum for Lance Armstrong, but we refused that.

“With Pogačar, it was different: we were told that he wants to win and they even want to help with our communication.”

Just why the biggest star in the sport decided for the first time to ride the Swiss event is a big question. That is even more relevant after several WorldTour teams decided not to take part this year.

It’s far from the biggest race in the sport, even if it has been won in recent seasons by Primož Roglič, Geraint Thomas and João Almeida.

However according to Chassot, Pogačar’s participation was on the cards for quite some time.

He pointed out to Wielerflits that he used to be a rider and that he knows former pro and current UAE Emirates XRG manager Mauro Gianetti well. He also said that Gianetti told him “two or three years ago” that Pogačar would one day definitely compete in the Tour de Romandie.

That intention turned to a definite over the winter.

“In December, a week before the announcement, Mauro called me,” Chassot stated. “He said: ‘Listen, we are at training camp, we are making the program and we are definitely coming to your Tour of Romandie. You can announce it quickly from mid-December, so that you can also work on the communication.”

The question remains, though: why?

Switching things up

Many pro riders follow a tried and tested route towards major goals. Once a pathway is found to victory, they often mimic the same approach in subsequent years in order to try to repeat their successes.

Changing things up risks leading to unexpected outcomes and in a chaotic, unpredictable sport where controlling the controllables is a mantra and way of life, forging new trails appears risky.

Pogačar is different.

He’s shaking things up in recent years, adding Paris-Roubaix to his program and this season opting for first-ever participations in Romandie and the Tour de Suisse.

The reasons for him going in new directions is becoming more clear.

One aspect behind his Romandie ride is simply emotional: he told CyclingProNet on Sunday that memories from his early years influenced his thinking.

“It is a WorldTour stage race. It is what suits me and I always admired the race since I was young, seeing Primož win many times,” he explained. “It was always beautiful to see it on the TV. So I wanted to come here to race, to experience it and to win.”

However there is another factor, one which explains his appearance and also gives an insight into his future career plans.

‘Still a lot of big races left’

Pogačar has repeatedly said that setting absolute records in the sport is not his prime motivation. He has suggested in the past that winning more editions of the Tour de France than anyone else is not a major goal for him.

Instead he has suggested that pushing himself in new directions and answering different challenges is what really drives him onwards.

He returned to that theme on Sunday.

“I don’t have Itzulia, I don’t have a lot of races, actually,” he said when asked by CyclingProNet if he wants to win all the historic stage races.

“The Tour Down Under, the Tour of Poland, the Eneco Tour, how do you call it… the Tim Wellens race,” he said, smiling, speaking about the event won four times by Wellens and now known as the Renewi Tour.

“And then one day races also. There are still a lot of big races left.

“Let’s go one by one and see how far we can come.”

The statement is important in light of what lies ahead. He’s been winning since a very young age and rather than becoming bored and perhaps burning out, switching things up keeps everything fresh for Pogačar.

It’s reflective of a growth mindset, a desire to forge new ground and to innovate.

Cycling fans can take encouragement from this. Wanting to win as many different WorldTour races as possible will give Pogačar motivation beyond a possible fifth or sixth Tour win.

It will also ensure he turns up to a wider range of events, thus giving supporters in Australia the chance to see him target victory in the Santos Tour Down Under in future years.

He’s competed there just one, taking eight on a stage plus 13th overall back in 2019.

Organizers, too, will be delighted: as Chassot noted, Pogačar’s participation this year was a big boost for the race and could be useful in their bid to try to attract much needed sponsorship.

Other races could well benefit too, spreading the Pogačar effect all around.

That approach is good for the sport, and good for the rider too.