Tadej Pogacar‘s season officially ended with his victory in the Tour of Lombardy, but not quite. On Sunday, the Slovenian will appear at the start of a new event in Andorra, the Andorra Cycling Masters, and the day after his triumph in the Tour of Lombardy, he was in his home country for the first Pogi Challenge.
The Pogi Challenge was held on Sunday near Krvavec, a Slovenian ski resort where Pogacar won his first race as a young cyclist in 2009. It consisted of a 24-kilometer course, the last fifteen kilometers of which climbed at an average gradient of 7.6 percent towards Krvavec. Right up Pogacar’s alley, right?
Certainly, were it not for the fact that the other 1,188 participants were allowed to start five minutes before Pogacar in an attempt to stay ahead of him at the finish. The UAE Emirates-XRG world champion had the help of his regular pacemaker, Domen Novak, to guide him to the foot of the climb, after which it was up to him.
Pogacar managed to overtake 1,187 participants with a climbing time of 40.44 minutes and thus finished… second! Forty-year-old Brit Andrew Feather managed to stay ahead of Pogacar with a time of 44.15 minutes, beating the number three by no less than four minutes, and was thus able to receive the flowers in Slovenia.
Read on below the video!
Pogi Challenge mainly for charity
The runner-up enjoyed the moment. “Our team is already set for next year. But if someone can climb that fast, you can always use him. Maybe he didn’t want to become a pro at all. Everyone has their own path,” Pogacar responded when asked if they could use Feather at UAE Emirates-XRG.
Ultimately, the Pogi Challenge was held with one goal in mind: to raise money for the Tadej Pogacar Foundation. “We want to thank everyone for participating and donating, so that we can raise as much money as possible for children fighting cancer.”