Insiders about five stages of 26th Tour of Slovenia

Difficult or not? Which will decide on the race winner? Where is a good chance for breakaway? Take a look what Tadej Pogačar and Marko Kump think about stages of 2019 Tour of Slovenia. Race director Bogdan Fink also shared his thoughts.

Excellent climber Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) was already very close to the top on Tour of Slovenia, but he got worldwide fame recently with fantastic victory on Tour of California. Marko Kump is one of the leaders of the Slovenian team Adria Mobil and one of the most triumphant Slovenian cyclists. Tadej will aim for green jersey, meanwhile Marko has his sights set on stage victory. Race director Bogdan Fink has different kind of concerns on his mind, he wants to see a good and safe race, with best cyclists on the top of the podium.

Let’s take a look what three insiders and great experts think about five stages of 2019 Tour of Slovenia.

STAGE 1: Ljubljana - Rogaška Slatina
Marko: “This is going to be a very interesting stage. It has very diverse profile, at the same time it’s a stage for sprinters. Teams with sprinters will control the stage, and anything except a sprint on the end would be a surprise.”
Tadej: “I agree, I also think that this is a stage for sprinters. Despite the fact that it’s a hard stage with lots of short climb, and the finish in Rogaška Slatina is also anything but easy.”

STAGE 2: Maribor - Celje
Bogdan: “The first real test on the race, but with a different finish as last year. After climb to Veliko Tinje it will only go up and down, before the finish we also have the bigger climb to Celje Hut. After that we’ll do another lap around the city. Climb on Celje Hut is easier as it was last year, but there are still 10 kilometers to the finish line after that and the group can catch potential escapees. Stage seems light if you look at the distance, but it’s very hard in the second part and has technical finish.”
Marko: “Adria Mobil has cyclists that will aim high in the overall standings and we’ll surly be active in this stage. We know these roads, climb to Celje Hut is hard. Stage will not give us the overall winner… this is a stage where you can’t win the race, but you can loose a lot. We’ll surly get a short list of contenders for the green jersey after this stage. We’ll bet on Radoslav Rogina, he’ll be our rider for overall standings.”
Tadej: “Interesting stage, short and fast. It will be nervous up to Celje Hut, we’ll be still in the group at that time. The group will surely fell apart on the climb to Celje Hut, I expect that a bunch of about 20 cyclists will be formed after that and these cyclists will fight for stage victory. I hope I’ll be there as well and that I will do good. It’s not an easy stage, but it’s not Basque Country.”

STAGE 3: Žalec - Idrija
Tadej: “Still not the Basque Country, but it’s harder than a day before. Selection will be even greater and maybe we can expect a solo descent to the valley.”
Marko: “There will be quite a few altitude meters on this stage. It’s similar to second stage, but with more climbs. I don’t know these parts of Slovenia, the final climb is also unknown to me. Looking at the stage profile I can say that this is where the gaps will create. Since the finish is right after descent this stage is perfect for guys like Matej Mahorič.”
Bogdan: “First part of the stage is easy and creates chances for breakaways. Second part is extremely technical, especially in the very last part with three mountain finishes. This is where the race ‘can break’.”

STAGE 4: Nova Gorica - Ajdovščina
Tadej: “Lots can happen before the very end of the stage, wind can influence on the development of the stage. It’ll be important to get familiar with the stage profile and stay focused on the bike. I didn’t rode to Predmeja before, but I will do that for sure ahead of the race.”
Bogdan: “Stage will be flat up to Kanal na Soča, followed by a panoramic part across Goriška Brda. Sprinters will not like this part, this one is more for the climbers. After that there is almost no more flats. Predmeja is the highest point of this year’s tour, after that we’ll decent to Ajdovščina. Uphill is hard, very well known to the cyclists. Climb is not quite over on the top, we could still see an attack there.”
Marko: “There will be no time for sightseeing, we sprinter will have one eye set on the last stage, the other one on survival. The goal will be to get to the last climb with as little gap as possible. I don’t know these roads very well, but when I hear the name Ajdovščina I think of wind. Wind can play a big factor on this stage.”

STAGE 5: Trebnje - Novo mesto
Marko: “Cobbles on the Main square are new and you can ride on them much better than in the past. They are not as challenging as they said, and they are less slippery than we expected. Climbs will be as hard as the cyclists will made them hard. Last climb to Vahta is not as challenging and selection shouldn’t be harsh. Descent is fast and not very technical. There will be a big battle in the finish – everybody will want a good position on the Kandijska road, ahead of the last turn towards the finish straight. This is different kind of finish and speed will not be as high as it was in the past editions. I’ll aim for victory on this stage.”
Tadej: “I’ll need the help of the whole team if I will have green jersey on the last stage, stage is not easy and we can see an attach on the last climb. Whole peloton will not stay together till the very end, most likely a bigger group.”
Bogdan: “This year we’ll not have finish loops around Novo mesto, the finish will be on the Main square in Novo mesto upon arrival to the city center. This is stage for sprinter, but they will have to do good on the climbs, otherwise some cyclists may create a different kind of outcome.”

We’re ahead of very interesting tour, that’s guaranteed!

Photos: Sportida