FILE PHOTO: Cycling - UCI World Championships 2024 - Men's Elite Road Race - Zurich, Switzerland - September 29, 2024 Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar celebrates winning the race REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File photo
(Reuters) - Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar is "a gear ahead" of the rest of the cycling field and has been almost unbeatable in 2024, said four-times Vuelta a Espana winner Primoz Roglic.
Pogacar has enjoyed a remarkable season, winning the men's road race title at the World Championships in September to add to his triumphs at the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France.
His victory at the World Championships made him only the third man to clinch cycling's "Triple Crown", following Belgium's Eddy Merckx in 1974 and Irishman Stephen Roche in 1987.
Asked if his compatriot Pogacar appeared unbeatable, Roglic told Spanish newspaper Marca: "At the moment it seems like it is. Or at least he's very difficult to match. But you never know how he will be next year. Maybe he'll be even better.
"We have no influence on him, I have to look at myself. If I can be the best version of myself, I could go with him and be happy," he said in the interview published on Sunday.
"I like to win. The best for me is when I'm in first place and there's nobody around. But where we are now is quite clear. There is one, Pogacar, who is one gear ahead. The only thing we can do is to improve ourselves and then see where we are."
Roglic, who sealed a record-equalling fourth Vuelta a Espana title in September, has failed to win the Tour de France, coming closest in 2020 when he finished runner-up behind Pogacar.
"I still have challenges that appeal to me. And one of them could be to win the Tour de France," Roglic said.
"I have to analyse it. I know that if Tadej is there it's difficult. I could say yes, I would like to win it, but also my record will be fine if I don't get it in the end. The earth will turn the same if I don't win the Tour. But it's a challenge."
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard)
