Tour de France: Pogacar shocks Roglic
September 19, 2020Slovenian Tadej Pogacar stunned his older compatriot Primoz Roglic to snatch the lead of the Tour de France on Saturday with only the processional ride into Paris left.
Pogocar, 21, stormed to victory in the mountain time trial on the 107th Tour de France after an impressive ride over 36.2 kilometres from Lure to La Planche des Belles Filles, leaving Roglic 1:56 minutes behind on the stage.
Pogacar will start the final leg to Paris boasting a lead of just one minute, with the yellow jersey holder traditionally not attacked on the final day. He had not previously worn yellow all race.
"I can't believe it, I couldn't hear anything because the fans were so loud," said Pogacar. "I just gave it everything from start to finish. My dream was just to compete and now I'm stood here. Incredible. I don't know when I'll be able to process this."
Vuelta winner Roglic had entered the 20th and penultimate stage with a 57-second cushion. But Pogacar, of UAE Team Emirates, was just too strong and is now poised for a famous maiden Tour win. He is also set to wrap up both the polka dot and the white jersey.
mf/jh (dpa/SID)