Pogacar's road title confirms superiority

Tadej Pogacar lit up Kigali’s climbs with a trademark long-range attack to claim a second consecutive men’s road race world title on Sept 28, with an air of inevitability surrounding the event as the Slovenian cemented his legacy among cycling’s all-time greats.

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He triumphed as the championships were staged in Africa for the first time, with hundreds of thousands cheering from the roadside in Rwanda.

“I was chasing this for the whole year... It’s been an amazing last few days, an incredible experience, ” Pogacar said.

Belgian Remco Evenepoel, who won the individual time trial for the third year in a row on Sept 21, finished second, Imin 28sec off the pace, with Ireland’s Ben Healy third, another 48sec further back.

Pogacar, whose grimace turned into a smile in the final lap, is the third rider in the last two decades to retain the rainbow jersey after Slovakia’s Peter Sagan, who won three in a row from 2015 to 2017, and Julian Alaphilippe of France (2020, 2021).