Slovenian Tadej Pogacar won the Tour de France for a record-equalling fifth time.
The 27-year-old UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider crossed the line on Paris’ Champs-Elysees in the peloton, to join Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain as the endurance event’s most successful male riders.
All-conquering Pogacar raised the idea that his remarkable reality is proving stranger than fiction, describing it as “something you wouldn’t even maybe write in a story book”.
The three-week Grand Tour’s final stage was won by the Netherlands’ Mathieu van der Poel of Alpecin-Premier Tech after a frantic charge to the line on the French capital’s famous cobbles in which he pipped team-mate Jasper Philipsen of Belgium by inches.
Pogacar’s victory means he is positioned by many as the greatest cyclist of all time, superseding the achievements and status of Belgian legend Merckx.
It also marks Pogacar’s third Tour win in succession and includes a record-breaking ascent of the iconic Alpe d’Huez on stage 19, when he sealed another dominant victory.
It was the last of five stage wins in a race in which Pogacar used his explosive launch and unmatchable metronomic pace to see off his rivals, who for some time have had virtually no answer.
Pogacar has won almost every major race in the sport, including the Tour of Flanders, Giro d’Italia, Milan-San Remo, Road World Championships, Giro di Lombardia and Liege-Bastogne-Liege.
Pogacar was booed by some fans during the Tour, as his performances are often so far ahead of any of his peers that some feel frustrated the sport is losing its competitive edge.
He now has 127 wins in an eight-year elite professional career.
“Victory is really special,” said Pogacar. “Thank you to all the fans and my team.
“But the biggest thanks goes to all my family who support me all my life. My parents – without them I would not be standing here five times already.
“Seven Tours and seven times on the podium, and five wins, is something you wouldn’t even maybe write in a story book, and it’s unbelievable for me.
“It’s a magnificent podium with some incredible champions to fight with.
“It’s a shame Jonas [Vingegaard] crashed out this time and many others. I hope they have a quick recovery and next year we fight again.”
