Two-time world champion in road racing, European champion, four-time winner of the prestigious Tour de France, and winner of the Giro d'Italia. Yet in Slovenia, he’s the rider who leads by example – showing young people the power of movement, discipline and joy.
He came, he saw, he conquered
When he surprisingly won the prestigious Tour de France in 2020 at the age of 21, everyone wondered who Tadej Pogačar was. Today, the whole world knows him, as he and his role model and compatriot Primož Roglič have been at the top of world cycling for several years. "Pogistar", continues to make cycling history with four overall victories at the Tour de France (2020, 2021, 2024, 2025) and an additional overall victory at the Giro d'Italia (2024). The Slovenian cycling gem wearing the UAE Emirates XRG team jersey is also the youngest four-time Tour winner in history. In addition to his high-profile victories in prestigious three-week races, Pogi has also won an Olympic bronze medal and is the current two-time world road race champion (2024, 2025). At the age of 25, he reached a historic milestone in the UCI World Ranking, becoming the first cyclist to pass the 10,000-point mark.
The year 2025 was another record year for Pogačar: he defended his world champion title in the road race, won his first European road cycling championship title, became the first cyclist in history to win the Giro di Lombardia monument five times in a row and the first with a podium finish at all five monuments in a single season.
Tadej Pogačar’s top achievements
See a selection of Tadej Pogačar’s most prominent achievements at international races and at Tour of Slovenia.
World road race champion
2024 and 2025
European Road Race Champion
2025
Bronze medal in road racing
2023
Bronze Olympic medal in road racing
2021
La Vuelta - 3rd place in overall rankings
2019
Two-time winner of Tour of Slovenia
2022 and 2021
Yellow jersey for the overall victory
2025, 2024, 2021 and 2020
Polka dot jersey, leader of the best climber classification
2025, 2021 and 2020
White jersey for the best young rider
2023, 2022, 2021 and 2020
Pink jersey for the overall winner
2024
Blue jersey of the winner of the mountain stages
2024
Tadej Pogačar: Two-time road race world champion
Pogačar’s exceptional collection of trophies from the most prestigious road races and major one-day races was supplemented by two consecutive world champion titles in 2024 and 2025. On both occasions, he left his rivals far behind in the final section of the race and thus proved that he is currently the king of road cycling.
Watch unforgettable moments from both of Pogačar’s gold medal-winning world championship races.
The 2024 UCI Road World Championships
Some 100 kilometres before the finish line of the Men’s road race in Zurich, Pogačar launched an epic attack and cycled the last 51 kilometres all by himself, well ahead of his competitors.
By winning the Men's road race in Kigali, Pogačar became only the eighth cyclist in history to successfully defend the title of road race world champion.
Race from the Tyrrhenian to the Adriatic Sea (2022, 2021)
Source: STA
Cyclist for great races
The epic duel between Tadej Pogačar and Primož Roglič during the 2020 Tour de France, crowned by the double victory of the Slovenian cyclists, was a major milestone in the history of Slovenian cycling. Apart from individual stage victories, no Slovenian had managed to win the prestigious race until then. The success of the outstanding "Pogi" and "Rogle" in this race triggered an avalanche of new cycling achievements for Slovenia - Tadej again took the yellow jersey as the winner of the 2021, 2024 and 2025 Tour, and Roglič has won the Spanish Vuelta four times.
Then came the Italian Giro.In 2014, Pogačar attended the Giro d’Italia as a fan when Luka Mezgec won the first stage. Ten years later, Pogačar realised his dream of competing in the Giro and winning it. And he did it in grand style, as he beat his rivals by almost 10 minutes, and at the same time, he is one of only three cyclists in the last 40 years that managed to win more than five consecutive stage victories at the Giro. With this success, he built upon the first overall Slovenian victory at the Giro d’Italia, achieved by Primož Roglič the year before.
In addition to the leading figures of Slovenian cycling, stage wins at the three Grand Tours have also been claimed by other Slovenian riders: Luka Mezgec, Jan Polanc, Jan Tratnik, and Matej Mohorič, who, together with his team Bahrain Victorious, also secured the overall team victory at the 2021 Tour de France.
Video: The picturesque landscapes of Slovenia through the eyes of Tadej Pogačar
“These landscapes shaped the way I cycle,” says Tadej Pogačar in this remarkable video story, in which he reveals the secrets of his success while riding along Slovenia’s most impressive and challenging cycling routes. The video also shows how connected he feels to Slovenia and its stunning landscapes. “This is my way of freedom,” he concludes.
Sport is in Slovenians’ blood. It would be difficult to list all the successes that Slovenian athletes have had. We are inspired by our wonderful green environment, so it is not surprising that the majority of Slovenians love outdoor sports activities perceiving them as something obvious. This is how Tadej Pogačar began his sports career. With a ball on the pitch. As a child, he played football in his hometown near Kamnik at the foot of Velika Planina, and he was quite talented. He got into cycling when his older brother started training with the Rog Ljubljana cycling club and a little later he joined the club as "Little Pogi". Already as a boy he was included in the national cycling team, where he continually achieved good results. He was noticed by the UAE team, with whom he signed in July 2018. Since 2019 he has been racing at the highest level of cycling worldwide.
Source: Slovenian Cycling Federation
Sprint to the cycling throne
One could say of Tadej Pogačar that he is a cycling prodigy. He crowned his debut among the cycling elite at the Volta a Portugal in 2019 with a victory. At the 2019 Vuelta a España, where Primož Roglič scored the first overall victory in a Grand Tour race for Slovenia, Pogačar was already on the podium (in third place). He gave early notice of his winning streak in the 2020 season with an overall victory at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana. The prestigious Tour de France was only the "crème de la crème" of his race to the very pinnacle of world cycling. But Pogačar is not just a one-hit wonder – he has worn the yellow jersey of the Tour winner already four times (2020, 2021, 2024 and 2025).
In the 2024 season, Pogačar achieved his childhood dream – by competing in the Giro d’Italia, a race he knew well as it takes place close to Slovenia. Pogi proved that the Italian cycling routes suit him well by claiming a decisive overall victory and by having rung up six stage wins, a feat accomplished only by a few cyclists in the Tour of Italy.
In addition to numerous accolades won at prestigious three-week races, Pogačar has also been successful in other elite competitions. He’s a two-time road race world champion, a current European champion, and an Olympic bronze medallist.
Pogačar’s exceptional success also includes five consecutive wins at the Il Lombardia, a feat which no other cyclist has ever managed to achieve.
Pogi also likes to compete at home. He took part in the Tour of Slovenia in 2021 and 2022 and scored decisive victories both times.
What does Slovenia have that other giants don't?
While enjoying the epic achievements of Slovenian cyclists and other top athletes, many of you might ask yourselves, what does this nation of 2 million have so that it can shine on all sport stages? Well, we could discuss this for hours. But we can point out a few reasons for the success of sport in Slovenia.
Tadej is not just passionate about cycling. He also found the love of his life on a bicycle. His fiancée, Urška Žigart, is also an excellent road cyclist. In an effort to obtain a World Tour licence, she entered into a partnership with the Italian team Alé Cipollini in 2019 and competed under the joint name Alé BTC Ljubljana. She currently rides for the AG Insurance - Soudal team. She is a multiple-time national champion. Her best result is a 5th-place finish in the multi-day Tour de Suisse (2025).
Pogačar’s success has had a great impact on the female cyclist from Slovenska Bistrica, who has made it into the top ten at several stages of renowned international women’s cycling races. Urška Žigart first came to the forefront in international racing in 2021, when she won the last stage of the Setmana Ciclista Valenciana. Žigart was also one of the three Slovenian cyclists who competed in the first edition of the Tour de France Femmes in 2022.
Slovenia – the land of champions
Slovenia is a true phenomenon in sporting success. Our athletes achieve great things and win medals in numerous sports. In terms of sporting achievements per capita, Slovenia certainly belongs at the very top in the world. This is why it’s not surprising that sport in Slovenia was honoured with its own national holiday.
Meet the places beneath the mighty peaks of the he Kamnik-Savinja Alps, where Tadej Pogačar grew up. Discover the beauty of the Alpine landscape, the Velika Planina pastures, the medieval town of Kamnik and a number of other interesting sights in the area surrounding Pogačar's birthplace Klanec near Komenda.
After taking part in major international road cycling races around the world, Tadej Pogačar likes to ride around his beloved Slovenia. Of course, he prefers to do it in company. Would you like to know what his favourite cycling tours are? Take a look at his selection of the best cycling experiences and they might inspire you, too.
Unleash it by going on a cycling trip around green Slovenia, across the picturesque landscape, on the asphalt or across the ridges and slopes, through charming towns and villages. There are more than enough possibilities.
10 reasons why you should go cycling around Slovenia
Slovenia is a paradise for cyclists. Cycling is one of the most popular activities among Slovenians. The successes of Slovenian cyclists at top cycling races additionally boost the enthusiasm for cycling. The diverse landscape is the perfect venue for all kinds of cycling – road to mountain cycling, family cycling or long-distance challenges. Discover more reasons why it is worth visiting Slovenia by bike.
In Slovenia, it is difficult to find an excuse that there is nothing to do. Seniors or young people can ride a bike, either a traditional one or an E-bike. You can explore Slovenia on foot – front, back, left, and right. Or you indulge in more adrenaline-pumping adventures.
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