But what planet does he come from? For his first day with the rainbow jersey of World Champion, Tadej Pogacar carried out a new solo raid on this Tower of Emilie. Setting off alone 38 kilometers from the finish, from the first ascent of the San Luca hill, the Slovenian once again achieved a feat, a week after his coronation on the Zurich Worlds.
Video – Tadej Pogacar’s victory at this Giro dell’Emilia 2024
The detailed summary
From the first kilometers, a breakaway of five men formed, with Benjamin Thomas (Cofidis), Roberto Carlos Gonzalez (Team Corratec-Vini Fantini), Ander Ganzabal (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Alessio Martinelli (VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè) and Jose Ramon Muniz (Petrolike). Behind is the training UAE Team Emirates who controls.
After 150 rather calm kilometers, the race picks up on the first ascent of the finale, the Montechiaro (3.3km at 9.1%), under very difficult weather conditions. There Lidl-Trek explodes the peloton, but everyone regroups at the foot of the first of the five passages of the legendary San Luca coast. And from the first hectometers, Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) goes on the attack, but is countered by a runner from the formation Astana Qazaqstan…before a certain Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) decides to accelerate. And no one can follow the Slovenian, who takes off alone 37.6km from the finish.
Tadej Pogacar on a walk
Behind the Slovenian, there is a stampede, no one reacts, everyone is in the red and Pogacar hollow. More than Remco Evenepoel or from Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) in the area, the first one even gave up. Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) tries to pursue the World Champion, but quickly finds himself more than a minute behind, while taking a few tens of seconds ahead of a group of pursuers. Pogacar is two, three, four legs above the rest of the peloton, which he makes pass for amateurs. With each lap, he increases his lead over his competitors by around thirty seconds.
Nothing to do in front of him, Tadej Pogacar once again crushed his opponents this Saturday and won the Tower of Emilieafter a new solo raid. Behind, the unfortunate Florian Lipowitz got caught on the last climb and it was finally Tom Pidcock (INEOS Grenadiers) who took 2nd place, ahead of Davide Piganzoli (Team Polti Kometa).
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