Rising Slovenian star wins Giro d'Italia
Slovenian Jakob Omrzel has been catapulted into the limelight by winning the Giro d'Italia Next Gen, a race for riders under the age of 23, his first major career title, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.
"It's something incredible to win the Giro NextGen on my first participation, I didn't expect that," the 19-year-old member of the Bahrain Victorious Development Team said after the obligatory prosecco shower.
Omrzel entered the final stage just 11 seconds behind the Australian Luke Tuckwell, a 21-year-old member of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe Rookies.
But the Australian was unable to stay with Omrzel and eventual stage winner Jorgen Nordhagen on the late climbs of the final stage around Pinerolo, having already been left behind by the Slovenian in the queen stage.
In cycling-mad Slovenia, the performance has led to inevitable comparisons with superstar Tadej Pogačar, but Omrzel rejects that. "I'm not the next Pogačar, I'm the young Omrzel," he said.
While he was not among the favourites in the prestigious race, Omrzel has had a good year overall, having won the youth classification at the Tour of Slovenia and the mountain classification at the Tour of Rhodes.
Looking ahead, he says it is still too early to think about joining the big league. "It would be too quick for me to take part in the Giro d'Italia next year, so I think I'll come back to defend my title at Giro Next Gen."
