Tadej Pogacar could take part in the Road Cycling World Championships at the end of September despite his horrific crash in the Vuelta a España. This was suggested by his team manager, Mauro Gianetti. However, they want to wait until he has undergone the necessary operation on his broken collarbone before making a definitive prognosis.
“Time is very short; he’s still in hospital and hasn’t had his operation yet. Of course, it wouldn’t be easy to recover in time for the World Championships,” said Gianetti on the Vuelta’s rest day. “But hey, we’ll have a clearer picture in the next few days. The broken collarbone is quite serious; it requires quite a major operation. That doesn’t help, of course.”
Pogacar, who had most recently been crowned world champion twice in a row, suffered a serious crash on Saturday during the eighth stage of the Vuelta and sustained a concussion as well as a shoulder injury. Due to the head injury, he has not yet been able to undergo surgery. This is due to take place on Tuesday or Wednesday. A broken bone usually takes six weeks to heal, although there have been comebacks in cycling after just four weeks.
Gianetti’s fears
Gianetti was immediately very worried about his star player. “I was really scared, because when you see those high speeds, you know you’re going to get hurt,” said the Swiss player. “When he was standing up, I was a bit relieved. I said to myself: ‘Right, he’s standing, he’s walking, he wants to carry on.’ But of course that wasn’t possible.”
Pogacar was aiming to win the Vuelta a España for the first time this year. The five-time Tour de France winner had only competed in the Vuelta once before, in 2019 as a 20-year-old, when he finished third. As well as the World Championships in Montreal – the road race takes place on 27 September – the Slovenian also intended to compete in the Tour of Lombardy on 10 October. Pogacar had most recently won the ‘Race of the Falling Leaves’ four times in a row.
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