When you see him driving, dominating and winning, it's easy to forget how young he is. So young that at the end of the race day he was invited to the stage twice to receive not only the jersey of the overall leader but also the shirt for the best young professional in the field. If, at the age of 24, he were to exhibit all his main prizes only from his four professional years in the first league of his sport, he would still have to rent an extension in his adopted home of Monaco.
On Sunday, Tadej Pogacar didn't have far to go home with his freshest golden trophy. He could have simply strapped her onto the luggage rack and cycled with her the 20 kilometres from the Promenade de Anglais in Nice along the coast to the Principality. At a harsh pace, of course. That the Slovenian superstar would have had the strength and the ability to do so is clear after his impressive performance at Paris-Nice.
Pogacar wins by a wide margin
Now it is a fixed, decades-old ritual among fans and experts in cycling to derive a lot from the outcome of the traditional "race to the sun", as it will run in the summer at the Tour de France on sometimes the same roads. Only Bradley Wiggings (2012) and Egan Bernal (2019) managed to prove an excellent early form in March at Paris-Nice and then be the best at the Tour. Pogacar is well on his way to joining the ranks this season.
The Slovenian took over the 81st edition of the prestigious long-distance race in a manner that the competition can only be afraid and afraid. With a view to the upcoming classics, in which Pogacar also wants to get involved as a matter of course, with a view to the Tour of France and in general. With an insatiability like Eddy Merckx once did, he picked up every bonus second in the sprint on the way and left the best climbers on the mountain in a flash. Still without a hint of the cynical coldness that once surrounded dominators like Lance Armstrong, but with the good-naturedness and joy of cycling that he almost always exudes.
Of the six stages driven – one fell victim to bad weather – Pogacar won the three heaviest and ended up 53 seconds ahead of Frenchman David Gaudu and even 1:39 minutes ahead of his Danish rival and reigning Tour champion Jonas Vingegaard. The largest gap at the top of Paris-Nice for ten years.
"It's always been my goal and dream to win this race, and to do it now is incredible," said Pogacar. What means to an end did he choose? "They say attack is the best defense." He has been following this motto for a long time. On Wednesday, he easily parried an attack from Vingegaard and won the stage that led up to the ski station La Loge des Gardes. Actually, it was not yet the plan of Pogacar and his team U.A.E. to take the overall lead. But: "You never say no to yellow," said the lightweight – and from then on did not give up the yellow outer dress.
On Saturday's queen stage, Gaudu and Vingegaard also lost out when Pogacar sprinted over them at the end of a gruelling day as if it were easy. The two-time Tour winner achieved a true attacking masterpiece that should leave no one in the dark on Sunday in the final stage – in the middle of his home training area. The ascent to the Col d'Eze became his solo show when he made his way away on the big chainring and took over 7 seconds from his rivals alone on the six-kilometer final climb, which averaged 6.30 percent steep. "I know the roads here very well, have trained a lot here and know exactly how much I can invest on the last climb to get to the top. I calculated it very well," said a satisfied Pogacar after his victorious debut at Paris-Nice.
A racer who has fantastic facilities, competes everywhere to win, seems to cope with any weather and never crashes. Pogacar has taken part in three competitions in this still young season and has won an incredible seven out of 13 days of racing. His team has not only found new strong helpers for Pogacar – newcomer Felix Großschartner, who came from Team Bora, prepared his captain powerfully for the coup on Sunday – but, it seems, has also been able to reduce the backlog in material.
This is all news that Vingegaard and his team Jumbo-Visma pose brain teasers. Now no Tour winner has been made in March. But if you want to beat this Pogacar from spring in summer, you still have to pick up the pace.