Tadej Pogacar suffered a rare defeat. The world champion finished second in his own 'Pogi Challenge', behind amateur Andrew Feather. However, it should be noted that it was not quite a fair competition.
A day after his fifth consecutive victory in the Giro di Lombardia, Pogacar took part in the ‘Pogi Challenge’. In this 24-kilometer race in Slovenia, 1,188 amateurs lined up at the start. The finish came after a flat lead-in on the Krvavec (15 km at 7.6%). This is one of the toughest climbs in Slovenia and was, before he moved to Monaco, a frequently used training climb for Pogacar.
The same Pogacar started the ascent of the Krvavec as the last rider. At the foot of the climb, he was five minutes behind the first amateurs. In total, Pogi – with help from teammate Domen Novak – overtook 1,187 riders. Only one amateur managed to stay ahead of him. That was Andrew Feather. The 40-year-old Brit climbed the Krvavec in 44 minutes and 15 seconds. Pogacar took 40 minutes and 44 seconds for the climb, but because he started later, he reached the top three minutes after Feather.
At the finish, Pogacar was asked if Feather should now get a contract with UAE Emirates XRG. “Our team is already full,” Pogacar replied with a smile, after congratulating Feather on his win. “But you can always use someone who rides that hard. Maybe he never wanted to turn pro, that could be it too. Everyone chooses their own path.”
