He simply cannot stay still. On Saturday he had his first road training session – which was also his last wearing the world champion's jersey, later handed over to teammate Brandon McNulty – but he didn't stop there: according to El Periodico in the article signed by Sergi López-Egea and Emilio Pérez de Rozas, Tadej Pogacar allegedly called surgeon Xavier Mir, the Catalan orthopedic specialist who operated on him in Barcelona following his devastating crash at the Vuelta, to ask for his opinion on the possibility of starting in the European championship taking place on Sunday on the roads of his Slovenia.
During the phone call, Professor Mir confirmed that there are no medical obstacles to Pogacar's participation in the race. Let us recall that the Slovenian crashed on August 29th, suffering a fractured left collarbone, for which he was operated on, as well as a vertebral fracture and head trauma that forced him to spend a few nights in the hospital.
A few days ago, it caused a stir when the list of entries for the European Championships was published and Pogacar's name still appeared among Slovenia's selected riders: UAE Emirates XRG, when contacted by various journalists, immediately replied that it must have been an outdated list (each nation enters an expanded roster of athletes in the continental event) and that we would only see Pogacar racing again in 2027.
Now, this cheeky phone call: a mere thought? an idea? a last-minute whim? And how will UAE react? According to rumors circulating on social media, there would be little enthusiasm for Tadej's idea...
As the French would say, a story to follow.