POGACAR'S PHILOSOPHY. «CYCLING IS HAPPINESS, ALWAYS AND ANYWAY. AND IT'S BEAUTIFUL TO TRANSMIT THIS PASSION»

INTERVISTA | 28/11/2024 | 08:25
di Giorgia Monguzzi
Legend, champion, unbeatable, extraordinary, we've run out of words to describe Tadej Pogacar and his 2024, or perhaps we've never used the right ones. This year the Slovenian truly entered history, giving and gifting himself one emotion after another, overwhelmed by fans' affection, media pressure, and those already asking what he thinks of doing next year. For him, there doesn't seem to be even a moment of pause, always 100%, always winning, even unbeatable in a padel tournament done somewhat for fun, but which he took much more seriously.
Tadej barely has time to finish a match and put down the racket when he is assaulted by fans seeking an autograph and journalist colleagues waiting to know something about his plans for 2025. The Slovenian's response is clearer than ever: "I believe I'll do the Tour in 2025, but I haven't yet drawn up my complete program. One day I'd like to win the Vuelta and who knows, maybe even the three grand tours in the same year, also the classics I'm missing. I don't like setting limits for myself". And to those trying to dig deeper, he clearly says not to speculate on his answers because he hasn't decided yet. When it's our turn to have a chat with Pogacar, we both understand we'll go in a completely different direction to take a journey through his visceral love for cycling.
Tadej Pogacar is madly in love with cycling, we've known this for a long time and saying it doesn't even make news anymore, yet somehow it makes us reflect on how a champion hungry for everything has a pure passion for this sport and the need not to detach from it. "I think I've been without a bike for about 10 days, I didn't count them, but certainly not more, I took a moment of vacation before throwing myself back into training" – Tadej explains when we ask how he's living these months without races – I'm using these weeks to carve out some time for my family, for my friends, but soon it'll already be time to start again. The season doesn't start with races, but much earlier, with all the planning and preparation. In December I'll do a first training camp, I don't know yet if alone or with some companion, but that'll be the occasion when I'll make real plans to understand what to aim for and how to prepare myself"
What strikes us about Tadej is his ability to find new challenges; after such a successful year with the number one title firmly attached, some would bask in their results, but this is not his case. "2024 was beautiful, but I'm already resetting everything to think about next year" the Slovenian tells us, explaining how he approaches each year. The key rule is to set always new challenges, start from zero, as if everything is still to be built, but above all to enjoy doing it. "This season was magical, I won two grand tours, I'm world champion, consequently the pressure increases from everyone, primarily from fans. I simply don't think about it, cycling is fun for me and that's what really matters to me. I know it sounds strange to talk in these terms about a sport where you struggle, but for me, sacrifices are part of the game" Tadej tells us, offering his usual smile. Let's admit it, we always find it a bit strange to see him so positive up and down the bike, always ready for a good chat with fans and to renew love for a sport that requires so much effort. But what's the secret? We try to ask him, receiving an answer that, yes, explains everything.
"I'm always happy because I like cycling" – he continues – "like in all things, if you want to excel you must learn to live with stress, it's something normal, it's part of the game. Everyone makes different choices, for me cycling is fun but it takes a lot of consistency and training, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, but when it happens you must always try again, again and again until you're satisfied. If you practice a sport where stress is greater than happiness, it means it's not for you, that you've got everything wrong. Cycling makes you happy, perhaps the right question isn't why I'm always happy but why others aren't."
A few days ago Tadej Pogacar was the absolute protagonist of the evening dedicated to celebrations for A&J All Sport, led by Alex and Johnny Carera; the world champion took the entire scene like a true dominator. It's strange to think about the first time we met him, same place, same circumstances, 5 years earlier when he was still not the champion we know, but was one among many applauding the triumphs of star Vincenzo Nibali. Reminding him of that moment is like taking a dive into the past of what he was, what he has become, but also those values that have never changed. "I remember well when I met Johnny and Alex, I was very young and still didn't know what I could become, they were fundamental for my career because they made me discover the cycling world and advised me well about which team to choose. Their work is incredibly precious, but they've also become friends with whom to share many things" Tadej tells us, explaining how cycling in Slovenia is not even remotely the number one sport, some are lucky and find a team to race in Europe and others don't.
Following the wave of his successes, more and more children have become passionate, started cultivating their dream and the world champion himself created a school to transform everything into reality. "In recent years, cycling in Slovenia is growing more and more, many children are approaching a sport that I love immensely and that I'm happy to share. A few years ago the Pogi Team was born, a project to bring the youngest closer to the sport, in recent months the Pika Team has also been added, its female version that Urska strongly wanted. I believe it's something beautiful to be able to bring children closer to sport, teach them cycling values and make them passionate by bringing a bit of personal experience. For now, it's a project we can't fully follow as we're both still professionals, but I believe it will be part of our future, when our careers end we can dedicate ourselves fully to it".
The world champion speaks joyfully about his little fans and how cycling can passionate many children just as it happened to him, so we propose a challenge: how would he describe cycling to a child who doesn't know it? It takes little to ignite Tadej, who not only accepts the challenge but also shows a bit of emotion. He takes a few seconds to think "Wow, it's difficult to find the right words" he tells us and then starts trying to explain his cycling. "Cycling is a wonderful sport, you fall in love with it instantly, once you're on a bike you never stop, you simply can't do without it. Many times what I do is taken for granted, but personally I thank every day for being a cyclist and doing this as a job, I can live doing what I love and having a lot of fun."

And since Christmas is a month away, we take the opportunity to ask him who he would make his special wishes to.
"For the next year, I hope to have fun again, cycling is beautiful and makes you happy; I wish the same for Urska, and also that she remains the beautiful person everyone knows. I would also like to wish all my fans, I wish them much good and much happiness, but above all to maintain the passion they have when watching cycling" Tadej finally tells us, promising us a 2025 to be enjoyed. We take his word for it.