“Out of respect for Remco”: Tadej Pogačar carries spare jersey on training rides to avoid wearing rainbow stripes on time trial bike; “Amazing sh*thousery”: Breakaway rider going in opposite direction waves at peloton at UAE Tour + more on the live blog

Despite all the news of a bumper €8 million contract, while being adjudged as the best rider of all time by Eddy Merckx himself, you’d think Tadej Pogačar might have allowed some of it to get to his head. But if you were to believe Rune Herregodts and Florian Vermeersch, two riders who joined UAE Team Emirates–XRG this year, they would tell you that he’s truly a “very normal guy”.

In conversation with the Dutch newspaper Het Nieuwsblad, the pair have shed light on the inner workings of the richest cycling team in the world, as well as how it feels to train and ride with the men’s road world champion.

One quite agreeable, almost deferential habit of Pogačar that was revealed in the interview is that he carries a spare non-rainbow jersey in his pocket while out on training rides. Why, you ask? So that if they switch to time trial bikes from their road bikes, Pogačar isn’t wearing the rainbow bands out of respect for Remco Evenepoel, the men’s time trial world champion.

> “I want to know what you really pedalled”: Remco Evenepoel asked Tadej Pogačar to share his power meter data after Il Lombardia (spoilers: Pogačar didn’t)

Herregodts said: “Do you know what I thought was great? During training, we sometimes switch from a regular bike to a time trial bike. Then he always insists on taking a regular jersey with him, in addition to the rainbow jersey he was wearing.

“He doesn’t want to sit on his time trial bike with his rainbow jersey. ‘Out of respect for Remco’, he [Pogačar] says. He would rather ride with a jersey in his pocket all the time. He even rolls up the rainbow bands on his pants when he’s on his time trial bike. Fancy, right? In terms of respect, that counts.”

Remco Evenepoel and Tadej Pogačar, 2024 Giro dell’Emilia (Zac Williams/SWpix.com)

Vermeersch, runner-up of 2021 Paris–Roubaix, joined UAE Team Emirates after six years at Lotto-Dstny, and he said that he’s been made to feel welcome at his new team: “I was a bit afraid of that at first. It had been six years since I had been in a new environment. But I felt very welcome.”

Herregodts, who joined from Intermarché-Wanty, added: “And Pogacar helps with that. It’s been said a thousand times that he’s a very normal guy. That’s really true. Imagine the whole team is sitting around a table and you were to put a camera on it. Then you were to show that footage to someone who knows nothing about racing and ask him who of all those guys is the best rider ever. I don’t think they would pick Tadej. He gets along with everyone so easily.”

Maybe he is just a chill guy… who just so happens to be very non-chill when it comes to winning a bike race.

> Fabian Cancellara: "Pogačar is not going to kill cycling... but obviously if someone dominates so much it becomes less interesting"

BMC Bikes has issued a voluntary recall notice on its Kaius 01 gravel bike, in which it asked riders to “immediately stop riding” it after tests showed that the “fork steerer tubes separating under heavy duty riding conditions”

In a press statement, the Swiss bike manufacturer said: “BMC has become aware of a few instances where certain fork steerer tubes have separated under heavy-duty riding conditions. While there are few reported instances to date, these instances are inconsistent with the standards that BMC holds itself to.

“BMC’s driving force is to provide products that meet the highest performance expectations of both athletes and everyday riders. With this in mind, BMC has decided that the best course of action is to recall all Kaius 01 bicycles for inspection, and to replace the affected forks with a more robust version.

“Please immediately stop riding your Kaius 01 bicycle and visit your local BMC retailer or dealer. The retailer or dealer will inspect your bike and determine whether the fork requires a replacement. If a replacement fork is required, the retailer or dealer will install the new fork at no cost to you.”

The models affected in this recall are:

• 2023 Kaius 01 ONE
• 2023 Kaius 01 TWO
• 2023 Kaius 01 THREE
• 2024 Kaius 01 LTD
• 2024 Kaius 01 ONE
• 2024 Kaius 01 TWO
• 2024 Kaius 01 THREE
• 2026 Kaius 01 THREE
• 2026 Kaius 01 FRS

“BMC apologizes for the inconvenience created and will do whatever is in its power to solve all cases as fast as possible,” the company added.

Trakke, the Scottish brand behind the beautifully handcrafted bags made using almost exclusively locally sourced goods, has announced that it is having to shut down after 15 years, due to financial hardships.

“After 15 years in business we are closing our doors,” the company said in a social media post. “Manufacturing in Britain has always been tough, but over the last few years, it has become harder and harder to make ends meet.

“Now, rising costs, tax increases, and the unpredictable financial climate have made it untenable for us to continue operating. We are heartbroken.

“Trakke was founded on the principle that we would support British Manufacturing in an ethical and sustainable way - and we have stood by that. Since 2010, every single bag that we have ever produced was made right here in Scotland using some of the best materials available in the UK.

“Today, there are over 80,000 Trakke bags across every continent in the world. 80,000 bags worn by over 50,000 people. For us, that's pretty humbling.

“Each of those bags has been built to last. Each one crafted by a team of highly skilled and dedicated machinists who take pride in their work. Each one sold to someone who believes in what we do. Believes in our design principles. Believes in our ethos.”

> Review: Trakke Findo backpack

 

 

 

 

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The company also said on its website that it doesn’t have any plans of reopening at the moment, and its bags aren’t available to buy from third-party sellers as well. “However, you can still find second-hand Trakke bags on online auction sites and forums,” it added.

Alec Farmer, founder of Trakke, also shared an emotional video of himself thanking the cycling community for the support after the announcement: “I’m at a loss for words. Last night after the announcement, we received thousands of messages, comments, emails, DMs — just an enormous outpouring of support and love and care and sadness. That means so much to us, to all of us here at Trakke.

“It’s a sad time, it’s a difficult time, but the enormous outpouring of love yesterday just lifted us up. It was truly remarkable. I have been doing Trakke for my entire career, I started at university as this crazy ideain my living room and 15 years later, I’ve spent 15 years doing what I love — and I have. I have loved every second of it. And my team have had the opportunity to do what they love. It’s always been a team effort. None of us could’ve done this on our own.

“Sometimes when it’s stressful, I think come on, they’re just bags, and they are just bags. It’s just stuff, but after the comments yesterday… wow, we have connected with you guys in a way that really is just truly remarkable. We seem to have touched many of your lives, and inspired you, and given you something to stand for. I am truly grateful for that. As a designer, as creatives, as makers, what more could you ask than for a response like that?

> Review: Trakke Wee Lug messenger bag

 

 

 

 

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“I’m so sorry that this is coming to an end, and I’m so sorry that we live in a world where these huge companies are screwing people over just to make enormous profits. That is not the world I want to live in. If nothing else, remember this — you’ve supported us all this way, you guys have power. Support your local makers, support local businesses. “These are the guys who are trying to be different, who are trying to run the world in a different way. They’re supporting their local economy, and that is what the world needs right now.

“So thank you for everything that you have done, for all of your support over the years. Trakke wouldn’t be here if it wasn't for you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

> "Ingenious" bike storage rail earns £100,000 Dragons' Den investment

Groupama–FDJ has announced that David Gaudu will be forced to miss the Classic Var today and the Tour des Alpes-Maritimes tomorrow after he was involved in a crash caused by a stray animal while on a training ride.

The 28-year-old Frenchman had enjoyed a good start to the 2025 season, winning the third stage of the Tour of Oman and finishing third in the general classification.

Domen Novak, take a bow.

The UAE Team Emirates–XRG rider, who’s enjoying his moment in the breakaway in today’s flat stage of the UAE Tour, has brought with himself some much-needed, elite-level s***housery.

Présent dans l’échappée avec Tadej Pogacar sur cette étape de plaine de l’#UAETour, Domen Novak s’amuse bien : le Slovène a salué le peloton, croisé en sens inverse. Des coureurs se plaignaient eux de voir une voiture trop proche de ce groupe.pic.twitter.com/HjPL2S8ZA0

— Le Gruppetto (@LeGruppetto) February 21, 2025

As the breakaway crossed the peloton travelling in the other direction, the Slovenian couldn’t resist himself and greeted the riders with a cheeky wave — much to the dismay of a couple of Soudal Quick-Step riders, who seemed visibly confused at first, and then mildly agitated upon realising what was going on.

Cycling, never change…

In what has made national sports news headlines now, the colossal debacle from the first stage of Volta ao Algarve is destined to go down as a head-scratching, unforgettable moment in pro cycling, as most of the peloton went the wrong way for the sprint finish, while Ineos Grenadiers’ Filippo Ganna, who did stay on course and technically won the race, had his victory written off post hoc.

There have already been severe criticisms of not just the organisational aspect, but also how things were handled after the race, with Ineos and Visma both releasing press statements disagreeing with the decision.

Wout van Aert, who missed out on a chance to sprint and go for the win, said after the race: “Did I also take a wrong turn? Yes, I followed the men in front of me, right? This must be a human error. Someone must have been misinformed at that last roundabout.

“It’s almost laughable. At first I thought: how can this happen? I assumed that there would be a chicane somewhere that we didn't know about, but 300 meters from the finish suddenly all kinds of people were signalling that we had to be careful. So I paid attention.”

However, the Commissioner of the Public Security Police at Volta ao Algarve, Luis Miranda, reiterated that the organisation had not failed and that the “peloton was to blame” for what happened.

“The cyclists were coming down this street, the commissars with the red and yellow flags were here and they signalled for the cyclists to go left, to enter on the left side of the traffic circle,” he said. “The cyclists didn’t look at the commissaire, they were looking at the ground and passed him and went to the right.”

> Near Miss of the Day 922: Double trouble as cyclist gets close passed TWICE within the space of a few minutes — first by lorry driver and then by pick-up driver