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Is Tadej Pogačar’s Paris-Roubaix debut off? Hell of the North “too dangerous” for world champion as UAE Team Emirates boss warns “a bad crash could jeopardise the Tour de France”; Was Strade Bianche Pogi’s most impressive win ever? + more on the live blog

The sun is shining, birds are chirping in the trees, and Paris-Nice is underway – spring is well and truly here. Oh, and Ryan and Adwitiya are back from their weekend rides to keep you updated with all the latest cycling news on the Monday live blog, too
Mon, Mar 10, 2025 09:25
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Is Tadej Pogačar’s Paris-Roubaix debut off? Hell of the North “too dangerous” for world champion as UAE Team Emirates boss warns “a bad crash could jeopardise the Tour de France”; Was Strade Bianche Pogi’s most impressive win ever? + more on the live blogA bloodied Tadej Pogačar on his way to winning the 2025 Strade Bianche/Paris-Roubaix Arenberg training clip
12:06
Tell ‘em Pogi: Tadej Pogačar pulls an Andy Murray and corrects journalist claiming he became the first world champion to win Strade Bianche by pointing out: “Last year, Lotte won in the rainbow jersey, no?”

Remind me to add this one to the ever-growing list of epic Tadej moments (as if we didn’t get enough of those on Saturday), as the world champion’s top-notch demeanour was once again on display after winning Strade Bianche in the most dramatic circumstances.

As the adrenaline from that terrific post-crash ride wore off, reporters flocked to inform him that he had become the first rider to win the Italian classic in the rainbow jersey (or some of it anyway, considering the damage inflicted upon his world champ's skinsuit during that potentially season-derailing high-speed crash).

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Sporza (@sporza.be)

However, Pogačar, always one to stand his ground, was quick to point out that the reporters were in fact mistaken, and that Lotte Kopecky had already achieved that very feat just last year.

“I don’t know why everybody keeps saying that I’m the first world champion to win here, because if I remember correctly, last year, Lotte wins in [rainbow], no?” he told reporters.

Fans appeared to be chuffed with the reaction, many praising the Slovenian on social media.

“No ego, great champion, with respect for his colleagues, regardless of male or female. Nothing but respect!” wrote one person, while his fellow Strade Bianche winner Demi Vollering replied to Sporza’s Instagram post about the video with the applause emoji.

11:38
"Within three years of retiring I was a drug addict": Sir Bradley Wiggins recalls post-cycling "mess" that led to bankruptcy but insists financial woes "resolved"
Sir Bradley Wiggins with his fifth Olympic gold medal

> "Within three years of retiring I was a drug addict": Sir Bradley Wiggins recalls post-cycling "mess" that led to bankruptcy but insists financial woes "resolved"

09:06
Is Tadej Pogačar’s Paris-Roubaix debut off? Hell of the North “too dangerous” for world champion after Strade Bianche drama, as UAE Team Emirates boss warns “a bad crash could jeopardise the Tour de France”

The sight of Tadej Pogačar sliding off the road at high-speed, straight into a thorn bush, after misjudging a corner – and the follow-up, an hour or so later, of a tattered and torn rainbow jersey emerging triumphant in Siena’s Piazza del Campo – may have already provided the most iconic, dramatic imagery of the entire 2025 road season, and perhaps even the decade.

A bloodied Tadej Pogačar wins 2025 Strade Bianche

But all that drama at Strade Bianche may have also potentially robbed cycling fans of the most hotly anticipated moment of the year – the world champion’s long-awaited debut at Paris-Roubaix (if his UAE Team Emirates boss Mauro Gianetti gets his way, that is).

Last month, Pogačar set tongues wagging by posting a video of himself training on the jagged cobbles of the Arenberg Forest, Paris-Roubaix’s most infamous sector, during a surprise recon with domestique deluxe Tim Wellens.

And the three-time Tour de France winner underlined his desire to overturn cycling’s traditional unwritten embargo on grand tour contenders taking on the Hell of the North (the last Tour winner to triumph in Roubaix was Bernard Hinault in 1981), by saying he will make a decision on whether he will make his debut at the race after this month’s Milan-Sanremo.

Tadej Pogačar, Arenberg training ride, 2025 (Tim Wellens, Instagram)

> Tadej Pogačar tests himself on the jagged cobbles of the infamous Arenberg Forest during Paris-Roubaix-themed training ride… Is the world champion finally ready to tackle the Hell of the North?

But while the superficial cuts and bruises he sustained in Saturday’s high-speed fall proved the extent of his injuries, that Strade Bianche crash could ultimately spell the end of his Roubaix ambitions – for this year, at least – after Gianetti warned Pogačar against jeopardising his Tour de France chances, and potentially ruining his season, by crashing on the cobbles.

“Tadej could have fractured a collarbone and been seriously hurt. He banged his head, but fortunately, he was on the grass. He was full of road rash, but it could have been a lot worse,” the UAE Team Emirates manager told La Gazzetta dello Sport in Siena.

A bloodied Tadej Pogačar on his way to winning the 2025 Strade Bianche

“Tadej wants to give Roubaix a go, but I keep telling him that he needs to wait before doing it, to not take risks, because he could really get hurt. This race can be too dangerous, I told him again there is time to compete in the Hell of the North, it’s better to wait and not to do it this year.

“A bad crash could jeopardise the Tour de France and maybe even the whole season. I hope that he doesn’t do it this year, and I’ll tell him once again: there is still time in his career for him to ride Paris-Roubaix.”

Ah well, there’s always next year…

11:08
Laura Kenny (Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com)
Dame Laura Kenny becomes youngest ever president of Commonwealth Games England, amid “worry” over the future of the event

A year after announcing her retirement from cycling, Dame Laura Kenny has been appointed as the new president of Commonwealth Games England (CGE), the association tasked with supporting and managing the participation of Team England at the Commonwealth Games.

Following a singularly eminent career in road and track cycling, with six Olympic medals to her name and the title of the most successful British female athlete at the Olympic Games in history, Laura Kenny follows in the footsteps of Dame Kelly Holmes and Dame Denise Lewis to head the organisation. Aged 32, she also becomes the youngest person to be selected for the role.

The decision comes with 500 days to go to the 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, which will host a scaled-down version of the quadrennial event after the Australian state of Victoria — previously supposed to host the Games — backed down, citing rising costs, amid growing concerns about the Commonwealth Games’ future.

Laura Kenny (Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com)

Laura Kenny (Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com)

CGE said that Kenny will be a “key ambassador” in the build-up to the next Games, while its chair John Steele added that the seven-time world champion across various disciplines will “play a crucial role in helping us protect the future” of the Commonwealth movement.

Kenny said: “I love the unique feel of the event and I'm thrilled to work with and support England's athletes as their prepare for Glasgow and future Commonwealth Youth Games too.

“I have devoted my life to cycling and while that sport will always be my passion, it is great to have the opportunity to pass on some of my experience to athletes from a wider range of sports.”

She also addressed the clouds of doubt surrounding the event’s future, saying: “There is a worry. You have to worry and be a bit concerned.

“I'm just hoping that all the research they are putting into how to make it better and what they can do to attract hosts will actually work. I hope that everything they put in will validate that it is still a key event.”

> Laura Kenny “spoken to” by BBC bosses for appearing to promote luxury brands during Paris Olympics coverage

Speaking to Radio 4’s Today programme, she said: “I feel so grateful to Glasgow for putting their hands up and saying they will have it.

“It’s gutting for some sports because it is a slimmed-down version. Initially when there was no host, I was a bit nervous and I was a bit worried that it might not be a thing any more.

“The Commonwealth Games are now looking into the structure of it, how they can improve it, how they can make it more accessible, make it bigger and better so that hosts step forward.

“I really hope it goes was well as it went when Glasgow had it before (in 2014) and then they can see it is still viable and a really good sporting event that everyone loves.”

10:54
“Damn. Thought that was the new Brompton”

Spare a thought for the rider, yes, but also for the poor bike. I’m sure it’s not supposed to look like that...

Israel-Premier Tech Academy’s Florian van Tricht had the misfortune of seeing his bike mangled up after a crash at yesterday’s Grote prijs Jean-Pierre Monseré (what, you didn’t watch because you’re watching Paris-Nice or busy catching up with all the Strade Bianche drama?)

And that makes it another damaged Factor in a month, after Chris Froome’s crash at the UAE Tour also saw a similar fate dealt to his Ostro Vam…

09:29
Was Tadej Pogačar’s Strade Bianche comeback victory his greatest ride ever?

Normally, when Tadej Pogačar crosses a finish line, arms raised, the only thing bedraggled about his appearance is that unruly, almost certainly trademarked, tuft of hair carefully poking out from his helmet.

In Siena on Saturday, that calm, relaxed exterior was nowhere to be found. His pristine white rainbow skinsuit torn and muddied, blood dripping from his shoulder, elbow, knees, and hands: this was a very different kind of Pogačar victory.

This time, there were no 100km or 80km breakaways and solo exploits, no otherworldly, blistering attacks, or calm, hour-long processions as chaos ensues behind. Pogačar’s record-equalling third Strade Bianche win was built on something else entirely – resilience and dogged determination. And plenty of fight.

That shocking high-speed crash, the result of either a far too relaxed demeanour or an effort to put a renewed and revitalised Tom Pidcock under pressure on a descent – prompting the Slovenian to jokingly admit his bike handling is “shit” compared to the double Olympic champion.

The turbo-charged comeback – we’ll leave the silly ‘should Pidcock have waited’ debate to others – which unfortunately ended Connor Swift’s day at the front, and seemed to take place in the blink of an eye.

The brilliant wave to the team car after making his way around that corner safely the second time around. And that final, slow-burn attack which snapped the elastic and dispatched Pidcock, sealing another victorious ride into Siena.

So, with all that in mind – was the 2025 Strade Bianche Pogačar’s greatest performance ever?

Pogačar won this race:

[image or embed]

— Francesca 🌈 (@fraboxthislap.sedici.me) March 8, 2025 at 3:40 PM

“Pogačar often makes it look easy, today was harder,” the Inner Ring blog posted on Saturday. “Reminded of Philippe Brunel (now retired as L’Equipe’s lead cycling writer) who defined a champion as not only someone who wins big, but also someone who can overcome a situation in which they were disadvantaged and triumph from it.”

Meanwhile, the Cycling Podcast’s Daniel Friebe brilliantly summed it all up: “In a gallery of masterpieces so numerous they now seem routine, mass-produced, this one took its place among a handful that have forced us to redefine him yet again.

“The crash. The ripped jersey. The attack on Colle Pinzuto. All hanging in the museum – not just his but cycling‘s.”

But what about you? Where do you think Saturday stands in the ever-growing list of era-defining rides by the world champion?

Poll Maker

10:07
Racing round-up: Is FDJ vs SD Worx set to be the story of the season? Plus: Majestic Merlier wins and Alaphilippe attacks at Paris-Nice

Yes, you’re right – I still haven’t fully recovered from the weekend (and no, I’m not talking about my own two sun-soaked rides… although my legs are a bit sore, now you ask).

Earlier on Saturday afternoon, before that crash and Pogi vs Pidcock, an arguably more interesting, dynamic, and dramatic duel took place on the fearsome slopes of the Via Santa Caterina, as Demi Vollering blew past Anna van der Breggen to continue her brilliant start to life at FDJ-Suez and secure her second career Strade Bianche triumph.

Demi Vollering wins 2025 Strade Bianche

Thomas Maheux/SWpix.com

At the end of a brutal, chaotic race – which saw Tour de France winner Kasia Niewiadoma crash out hard – Vollering and Van der Breggen were head and shoulders above the rest, before Vollering’s decisive acceleration in the final kilometre.

A win over her old colleagues – and in the case of Van der Breggen, her old sports director and coach – at SD Worx will be a welcome one for a recharged Vollering, as she aims to re-establish herself as the sport’s pre-eminent star at FDJ-Suez following a turbulent final year at the Dutch squad.

For the returning Van der Breggen, after an encouraging start to her first season back in the peloton since 2021, it marked the first time she’s been able to properly go toe-to-toe with Vollering at the biggest races. And with three years of dust from sitting in the team car being slowly blown off, it bodes well for the rest of the season as she re-finds the form that made her one of the greatest riders of the 2010s.

And for us, the compelling season-long narrative of Vollering versus Van der Breggen, student versus teacher, and new team versus old team is shaping up rather nicely.

Meanwhile, yesterday also marked the start of the best race in the world (to me, anyway), Paris-Nice.

After a few tetchy, prodding movements among some of the GC contenders on the late climbs and bonus seconds sprints – and the obligatory doomed attack from Julian Alaphilippe (new team, same old Lou Lou) – Tim Merlier continued to cement himself as the fastest sprinter in the world by keeping calm and blowing away the rest in a chaotic bunch gallop in Le Perray-en-Yvelines.

Now, let’s all offer a prayer to the Paris-Nice weather gods for some wind today, eh?

Ryan Mallon

After obtaining a PhD, lecturing, and hosting a history podcast at Queen’s University Belfast, Ryan joined road.cc in December 2021 and since then has kept the site’s readers and listeners informed and enthralled (well at least occasionally) on news, the live blog, and the road.cc Podcast. After boarding a wrong bus at the world championships and ruining a good pair of jeans at the cyclocross, he now serves as road.cc’s senior news writer. Before his foray into cycling journalism, he wallowed in the equally pitiless world of academia, where he wrote a book about Victorian politics and droned on about cycling and bikes to classes of bored students (while taking every chance he could get to talk about cycling in print or on the radio). He can be found riding his bike very slowly around the narrow, scenic country lanes of Co. Down.

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Hirsute | 1 hour ago
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Car spreading
https://climatevisuals.org/carspreading/

https://cleancitiescampaign.org/carspreading

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Rendel Harris | 2 hours ago
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It's entirely subjective and I can't find any statistics to back it up, but my impression over (far too) many years of watching Paris Roubaix is that it's not really any more dangerous in terms of injuries than most other races. There may be more tumbles but they are usually at lower speeds on the cobbles, the narrowness of the sectors means riders often fall onto the verge rather than hard surfaces and the fact that the race very quickly goes into single file eliminates the bunch pileups that so often lead to broken collarbones and wrists. Yesterday proved that incidents can happen anywhere, after haring around terrifying high-speed descents on gravel Pogacar came off on what looked like a fairly innocuous bend on tarmac. I'd say he's at just as much risk of suffering a Tour-ending injury in the other classics that he's definitely going to ride as he would do at PR. As I said, a purely subjective impression, does anyone know of any statistics that prove or disprove that PR causes more serious injuries than other races?

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