- Tadej Pogacar stated that the exclusion of his fiancée contributed to his withdrawal
- The Tour de France champion was seen with her on the first day of the Paris Olympics
- Stay updated with Mail Sport’s live blog on the Olympics here
Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar was recently seen enjoying a relaxed coffee outing with his girlfriend, shortly after announcing his withdrawal from the Paris Olympics, attributing part of the reason to her exclusion from the event.
The Slovenian Olympic Committee reported on Monday that Pogacar had decided to withdraw due to ‘extreme fatigue.’
This announcement came less than a day after he secured his third Tour title in Nice, and ahead of the road race scheduled for August 3.
Nonetheless, he participated in a criterium race on Tuesday evening, mentioning to the press that his fiancée Urska Zigart’s exclusion was a contributing factor to his decision to withdraw.
Over the weekend, Pogacar was spotted with his fiancée Zigart, alongside Irish cyclists Sam Bennett and Eddie Dunbar, enjoying smiles and refreshments at a café in Villefranche, South of France.
Tadej Pogacar (bottom left) has been spotted enjoying a beverage with his girlfriend (centre)
Pogacar (pictured with girlfriend Urska Zigart) withdrew from the Paris Olympics on Monday
They seemed to have just wrapped up a session on the first day of the Olympics.
In an interview with Dutch broadcaster NOS, Pogacar expressed, ‘It’s not the main reason, but it certainly didn’t help.’
‘I believe she deserves a place. She’s a double national champion in both road racing and time trial.’
‘She is the only female cyclist to ever make the top 10 in week-long World Tour races. She excelled in the last two years, earning points for Slovenia, and without her, there wouldn’t be two spots in the (Olympic) road race.’
He added, ‘It is what it is, and now we can enjoy a vacation together.’
Zigart and Pogacar met during a cycling training camp in Slovenia. The couple currently resides in Monaco and announced their engagement in September 2021.
Pogacar said Zigart’s (pictured) omission was a contributing factor to his withdrawal from the Olympics
The 25-year-old shared a powerful message online responding to the Slovenian Olympic team announcement, stating: ‘I am appalled that Urska Zigart, a two-time national champion and the top Slovenian cyclist on the World Tour, was not selected for the Olympic Games.’
Zigart had been anticipated to secure a place in the Olympic lineup after a remarkable streak this year, which included a win in the national championships road race.
