Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar says "life hasn’t changed that much" following his historic victory last year and believes attempting to retain his title will be an even bigger challege.
UAE Team Emirates' Pogacar, then 21, became the youngest rider in 116 years to win the Tour de France in September and the Slovenian achieved it in remarkable circumstances by pipping compatriot Primoz Roglic in the penultimate stage's time trial.
Pogacar had previously proved he could challenge the world's best riders with a third-place at the 2019 Vuelta a Espana and wins at the Tour of California and Volta ao Algarve earlier that season, but his victory in Paris catapulted him to superstar status.
However, Pogacar insists it is business as usual as he prepares for the new UCI World Tour season.
“Life hasn’t changed that much for me,” Pogacar said during a UAE Team Emirates media conference on Monday. “Still I have the same passion, same motivation and the same goals. Only a little bit more media stuff to do, otherwise it’s the normal life.”
As the defending champion, Pogacar will be among the leading contenders for the 2021 Tour de France in June and July but he believes retaining the title will be more difficult than winning it first time around.
“It will be harder to win again,” he said. “That’s for sure, and I know it. I don’t feel the pressure to win again but we’ll try.”
The immediate focus, though, is the UAE Tour taking place February 21-27. Pogacar finished runner-up and claimed the Young Rider's Classification title in last year's race, which was shortened when the final two stages were cancelled after coronavirus cases were discovered.
Pogacar and his teammates are in Al Ain as part of their preparations for the UAE Tour. The third edition of the race is set to be the most competitive yet, with all 19 World Tour teams confirmed.
“It’s really nice to spend some time in training here in the UAE with all the riders,” Pogacar said.
“It’s been really great to have four new recruits and also not losing so many riders. This year we really have a wonderful team. Strong guys and I think we can have some good results.
“Last time I did the UAE Tour for the first time and came second. This year I will try to win. I want to do my best. We’ll see how it goes.
“We don’t put so much pressure. We prepare good and train good, and we’ll see next month how we race.”
The four UAE Team Emirates recruits Pogacar referred to are Italian Matteo Trentin, Rafal Majka of Poland, South African Ryan Gibbons and Swiss Marc Hirschi.
Hirshi, 22, moves to the team having won a stage at last year's Tour de France and claimed bronze at the UCI Road World Championships.
“I’m really motivated with the new team and for my long term plans to become a better rider,” he said. “They have progressed really well on the world stage and I’m really honoured to be part of this exciting team.
“This is my first time in Abu Dhabi and I’ll be back for the UAE Tour next month. It really is nice country and can do some good training here. It’s perfect for the season. I feel really good here.”
After all they achieved in 2020, including climbing into the top-three of the UCI team rankings, expectations are high for UAE Team Emirates in 2021.
Mauro Gianetti, chief executive officer of the UAE Team Emirates, is confident the team can carry that momentum into the new season, and once again the targets are ambitious.
“We reached the results to be the No 3 team in the world and win the Tour de France,” he said. “It took two-three years in advance to achieve this, which was nice. We are still working to improve and increase the levels of the team.
“We came out of an incredible season and we know the expectations are also high. We have a good team roster and I believe we will be at the level of the expectations for this season.”
