Only 7 cyclists have won the Giro and the Tour in the same season, Pogacar could be the next one

The challenge that Tadej Pogacar has set for himself this season is monumental: to conquer both the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France in the same season, a feat that no cyclist has been able to achieve since Marco Pantani did it in that fateful 1998, and that, with the demand and equality of today's cycling, many voices have deemed impossible to achieve.

Tadej Pogacar seeks to enhance his legend with the Giro and Tour double

Achieving two grand tours in the same season has become, in recent decades, an almost impossible mission. The reason for this is the demand involved in preparing for one of these races with the goal of winning, and the enormous physical and psychological strain it puts on the cyclist. In the case of the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France, the magnitude of the challenge is increased due to the proximity between both races, with less than two months between them.

Such is the difficulty of successfully linking both races that if we look in the history books, we see that only 7 cyclists have achieved it, all of them renowned riders.

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The first to achieve it was the Campionissimo Fausto Coppi who added both races to his palmares on two occasions: in 1949 and in 1952. The next to achieve it would be Jacques Anquetil in 1964. Of course, when we talk about records, we cannot forget a certain Eddy Merckx on this list. The Cannibal successfully linked the Giro and the Tour on no less than 3 occasions, in 1970, 1972, and 1974, the rider who has achieved it the most times.

In the 80s, another of the mythical cyclists, the Badger, achieved the double in 1982 and 1985. During these years, another cyclist would also be able to win the Giro and the Tour. We are talking about Stephen Roche in 1987, whose Tour de France that year left a bitter taste for Spanish cycling as it meant the defeat in the final stages of the race for Pedro Delgado, who came very close that year to conquering the French round.

In the 90s, another of the great cyclists in history stands out, Miguel Indurain, who practically introduced the Italian race to the Spanish public at a time when it was difficult to follow the transalpine race on television. Indurain won the pink jersey on two occasions and then the yellow jersey in Paris in 1992 and 1993. Finally, we would have to wait until 1998 to see a cyclist achieve both triumphs. It was the great Italian climber Marco Pantani, in a particularly turbulent year for this sport that led to the scandal of the Festina team during that Tour de France.

Since then, no cyclist has even come close to conquering both races. Those who have faced participation in both have ended up surrendering in the second one due to accumulated fatigue or, conversely, not performing optimally in the first one due to the need to arrive slightly undertrained in order not to collapse later in the French round.

Linking both races at the highest level means stretching the best form for 3 months, something that, for anyone who knows a little about training methodology, is practically impossible with the high level of cycling today.

However, as UAE Team Emirates director Josean Fernández Matxin himself said, if there is a cyclist today who can achieve it, that is Tadej Pogacar, especially this season where all the stars seem to have aligned in his favor to achieve such a feat.

When Tadej Pogacar decided to face the Giro d'Italia at the beginning of the season, he surely did so considering the superiority that Jonas Vingegaard was showing during the month of July. The clear idea was to win the Giro d'Italia and thus add a notable success to his palmares and then go to the Tour de France without the pressure of having to win it.

However, the crash in the Itzulia has changed everything, and while the plans for the Giro remain the same and Tadej Pogacar is the undisputed favorite, his chances for the Tour de France are much clearer now with the almost certain absence of Jonas Vingegaard, which undoubtedly makes the assault on the Grande Boucle much more achievable for the Slovenian.

However, the Tour de France will not be a walk in the park for Pogacar. Even if Jonas Vingegaard does not make it to the start, he will have to beat cyclists like a Primoz Roglic eager to avenge 2020 when he lost the yellow jersey to his compatriot in the uphill time trial to the Planche des Belles Filles. Nor should we underestimate a Remco Evenepoel who still has to prove that he can conquer the high mountains.

In the Giro d'Italia, it will not be easy either, and despite being by far the top contender for victory, let's not forget what happened to Remco Evenepoel last year, as the Italian race is always treacherous and surprises can come when least expected. In any case, to quote Matxin again, if anyone can achieve the double today, that is Tadej Pogacar.