Roger Alton Roger Alton

The real sporting star of this summer

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Think of a punishing distance for a bike race. Double it, multiply by ten, throw in two of the world’s great mountain ranges — and now you have the course for that epic examination of man’s very being known as the Tour de France, a ruthless appraisal of his heart, mind and soul. Not to mention body. Trying to dominate such a mighty beast is extraordinarily difficult. There are men who have subdued it multiple times to finish in the yellow jersey. But dominate it? That’s another story.

On Saturday, while England’s footballers were limbering up for a mere 90 minutes of kickabout against a modest Ukraine side, Tadej Pogacar, a young Slovenian who won the Tour last year, fearlessly took the beast by the scruff of the neck with a ride up and over the mountains that was described as a once-in-a-generation achievement. He shot past his rivals like a grown-up taking on kids, though in reality he is the kid. In a few minutes Pogacar put the Tour to bed. It is now almost impossible for anyone to catch him. He would be the sporting star of the summer if his brilliance wasn’t being drowned out by the sheer weight of sport right now.

Pogacar shot past his rivals like a grown-up taking on kids, though in reality he is the kid

Still only 22, Pogacar is already being talked about in the same breath as Eddy Merckx, who for decades has been regarded as a rider beyond compare. Pogacar has the perfect weight and build for a bike rider, his body an aerobic machine with a seemingly unique ability to use the oxygen his heart pumps round. His and Merckx’s versatility is the equivalent of a runner who could compete for Olympic medals at 400m, 1,500m and 10,000m.

Merckx was 24 when he won his first Tour in 1969 and went on to win four on the trot (and five in total).

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