In training at Isola 2000 last week, Tadej Pogacar, smiling and relaxed, sat on a graying sofa, in front of a paneled wall which recalled the mountain and already a little of the altitudes of the Tour de France which awaits him. Winner in May of a Giro which he crushed, for his first participation, the 25-year-old Slovenian is embarking on a challenge which has not been carried out since 1998 and Marco Pantani: doubling with the Grande Boucle. Even if he denies it, the double winner of the Tour (2020 and 2021) seems driven by the desire to make history. And this year, a team as strong as ever (Adam Yates, Joao Almeida and Juan Ayuso, among others) will support him in his challenge. Doubts remain about his ability to complete the two events, also about the level of form of his opponents damaged by falls at the start of the season (Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel, Primoz Roglic) as he experienced last year, this which had disrupted his preparation. And even a little more than that, since he evokes here an environment that he had deemed toxic and which would explain – in part – this time trial in Combloux where he lost the Tour.
