Elopements and weddings in Slovenia are every couples’ dream come true. You are in Slovenia, the dream country for your dream wedding. A stretch of sun-drenched Mediterranean coast to one side, snowcapped Alpine peaks reflected in crystal-clear lakes to the other, with a sprinkling of charming medieval towns in between. Imagine a lush green country dotted with romantic castles. Stalked by a pandemic, rejected by some as old-school and craving a younger following, for Prudhomme and the Tour ‘Pog’ is, for the moment at least, the breath of fresh air they need.Slovenia, the dream country for your dream wedding Close your eyes. He raps, he uses TikTok, he rides like it is fun. Despite the murky histories of some members of his team management, Pogacar’s youthful success was embraced by the race organisation. It’s been a big year for him and I’m sure this experience will give him real drive and focus.”īernal and Brailsford will have to contend with the march of the Slovenians. But then in that period between the first rest day and the second rest day, Egan pulled out,” he said. “To start with we sat tight and on that first rest day we were in a really strong position. Tom Pidcock, from Leeds, the former junior, world and European under-23 champion is among the highly rated riders now confirmed as joining next year.īrailsford batted away suggestions that Bernal’s leadership status had been damaged by his failed title defence. But we’re bringing in some experience and some new young talent and we’re building again.” “Jumbo are right smack in the middle of that maturity curve. “When you look at the life cycle of our team, there’s an older, very successful group over on one side, and then a younger up-and-coming group,” Brailsford said on Saturday. Bernal misfired badly but at 23 he has plenty of time to rediscover his mojo. With Froome moving to pastures new and Thomas celebrating his 35th birthday in May, the Ineos Grenadiers chief, Dave Brailsford, is also turning to youth. The past two Tour winners, Pogacar and Egan Bernal, have been among the youngest in history.

The kids – from the irrepressible Pogacar to Van Aert and his teammate Sepp Kuss, to Marc Hirschi of Team Sunweb, Enric Mas of Movistar, and Neilson Powless and Dani Martínez of Education First – have all made their mark. Old lags such as Alejandro Valverde, of Movistar, a veteran of 27 Grand Tours, will soon have to step aside. If, in the absence of Froome and Geraint Thomas, British interest in the yellow jersey was at its lowest for a decade, the generational change sweeping through the peloton was engrossing. Photograph: Thibault Camus-POOL/SIPA/REX/Shutterstockīarring a couple of tedious stages that resembled an upmarket sportive, there has been plenty to write home about. Primoz Roglic (left) gets a thumbs up from French President Emmanuel Macron (right). I was hoping Tadej would have some hard moments, so I was trying to believe in myself the whole race, but I was very far from it.” “I didn’t know I was going to have a bad day, but I was just losing and losing. Tadej was in a different world and he definitely deserves his win so really, congratulations to him. I want it to be different, but I can’t change it. Roglic took some time to compose himself but when he did meet the media late on Saturday evening, he was gracious and without any bitterness. Roglic, meanwhile, sat gasping on the road, comforted by the two Jumbo-Visma teammates, Tom Dumoulin and Wout van Aert, who had given him the most support. My dream was just to be in the Tour and now I’ve won.” “I knew the climb very well and I went flat out from bottom to top. By the time Roglic laboured into the final 100m, Pogacar and his management team were jumping for joy. Even before the last time check, Roglic’s goose was clearly cooked. Pogacar, in contrast, was unerring as an arrow, attacking the climb with speed and purpose. “It didn’t work so good, huh?” Roglic said, dryly, of his new helmet, before adding: “I struggled with everything.” Without the protection of his team, the 30‑year‑old wilted, fighting the gradient and struggling with a new aerodynamic helmet that grew increasingly lopsided as his torment increased.

Some, including the four-times Tour winner Chris Froome, predicted Roglic might fade and they were proved right.

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