Slovenia's cycling superstar targets first Vuelta title in long-awaited return

The world's best cyclist of recent years, Slovenia's Tadej Pogačar, has announced he will compete in the Vuelta a España, the only Grand Tour he has yet to win.

His appearance in the Spanish three-week race this year will end a seven-year hiatus as the last time he took part in the Vuelta was in 2019, when he finished third overall, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.

The five-time winner of the Tour de France announced his decision on 3 August.

"Tadej Pogačar confirmed to make his Vuelta a Espana return, seven years after winning three stages and finishing on the final podium," his UAE Team Emirates-XRG wrote in a post published on its website.

"The Slovenian heads a balanced and experienced line-up as the Emirati squad looks to build on the successes of the Tour de France," the team added.

"I'm excited to say I'm going back to La Vuelta. It was my first ever Grand Tour back in 2019 and an amazing experience. Spain is a country I love to visit and race in and I think the time is right to go back," Pogačar was quoted as saying by his team.

"The motivation is high to finish off the year in a good way and the Vuelta will be a big target. The team is strong and we hope to do good things."

This year's Vuelta will take place between 22 August and 13 September. The 81st iteration of the race will begin with an individual time trial in Monaco. It will then make a stop in France and Andorra before returning to Spain. There will be seven summit finishes, two individual time trials and almost 3,300 kilometres of racing.

Pogačar claimed a record-equalling fifth Tour de France title in July. When it comes to Grand Tour feats, his palmares also includes the 2024 Giro d'Italia title.

It had been speculated that he would appear in the Vuelta this year even before the official announcement, but his team had wanted to wait until the Tour de France was over.

Another Slovenian multiple Grand Tour winner will compete in the Spanish race this season as Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) aims to claim his record-breaking fifth Vuelta title. The 36-year-old was recently hit by a car on a training ride but he hopes to be ready by the time the Vuelta begins.

Pogačar raises money for his hometown

Pogačar's decision to compete in the last Grand Tour of the season comes after he hosted the Pogi Challenge, a series of cycling events held around his hometown of Komenda.

The 2026 Pogi Challenge started on 31 July with the Tadej Pogačar Criterium, where he faced several other top cyclists over 35 laps and won in a relaxed atmosphere.

Another highlight of the three-day charity event followed on 2 August, when recreational cyclists from around the world took on the route from Komenda to Mt Krvavec. Pogačar gave the field of 1,189 amateur riders a head start of about seven minutes, and seven of them managed to finish the punishing 15.1-kilometre climb before him.

Pogačar did not have to ride all the way down as Slovenian ski jumping world champion Domen Prevc was enlisted to fly him from the mountain with a helicopter. During the Pogi Challenge, Pogačar's foundation raised EUR 116,000 for renovation of Komenda. The town was hit by a severe storm in June.

Photo Instagram/tadejpogacar