EXCLUSIVE: Tadej Pogacar ready for Giro-Tour double in bid to emulate Marco Pantani

Pogacar is dominating the Volta a Catalunya at time of writing, but the anticipation is growing for his schedule in the coming months: the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France, where, barring any surprises, the Slovenian will compete in both with the aim of winning.

Q: There are many people who think you can focus your season on the Tour de France. What do you think about that? And do you like the nickname the 'cannibal'?

A: "This year I will focus on the Tour, for sure. But I think about things step by step: before the Tour I will do the Giro d'Italia, which is also important.

"Regarding the nickname I don't know: I'm not the one who chose it, as far as I'm concerned, for now I'll continue to use my name or, at most, Pogi."

The next big step will be the Giro d'Italia: how do you feel about that? How do you plan to achieve the double?

"I'm training well, preparing well, and I hope everything goes according to plan. We'll see how I start the Giro. For now we're not thinking too much about the Tour, we're working on one objective at a time. I think we're working well to achieve the one-two."

The last person to win the one-two was Pantani: what do you remember about him?

"I don't remember much about him because I was born in 1998. I think that was the year he won both races, although I'm not sure.

"He left a great legacy, in Italy they still admire him so much today. It is difficult to follow in his footsteps."