RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesMathieu van der Poel (R) dug deep for a memorable, razor's edge triumph (Anne-Christine POUJOULAT)
Tadej Pogacar said he was looking forward to taking some time off and enjoying the "small things" in life after making Tour de France history on Sunday.
Pogacar joined an elite club of riders to have won the sport's greatest race five times: Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain.
But he was not interested in thinking about joining such lofty company.
"Right now I just want to enjoy the moment of winning the Tour," he said.
"If it's the fifth or the first, it doesn't matter -- it's unbelievable to wear the yellow jersey and to cross the line in Paris winning it.
"I will just enjoy this moment, not thinking about any history, not thinking about (joining any club).
"I just want to live this moment, come back home, relax, enjoy the small things of life.
"I'm really happy and proud to win a fifth Tour. Every single one has a different story, a different meaning, different emotions.
"Each one of them feels incredible and unbelievable for me."
Mathieu van der Poel achieved a career dream by winning the final stage on the famous Champs Elysees avenue in Paris.
The cobbled classics specialist escaped with world champion Pogacar on the Montmartre climb that was heaving with ecstatic fans.
Both committed fully to the charge to the line for 10km as a group of sprinters just seconds behind inched closer to them.
In the final 700 metres, Van der Poel surged out alone as Slovenian Pogacar wilted and he narrowly held off the pack in a photo-finish.
"It was no words, no communication, we just both rode to the death, to the final and I ran out of gas," said Pogacar.
"I knew that we had to go all out, he knew we had to go all out, we both committed and he took a beautiful victory."
- 'Not from my toes' -
The 31-year-old Dutchman admitted that he thought the chasers would catch him before the line.
In the end, it was his Alpecin Premier Tech team-mate Jasper Philipsen who came closest to pipping him to the line.
"I thought we were going to get caught back, but then I was just thinking about this moment, and I just put my head down in the last 500 metres," he said.
"I just went as hard as I could, and I was just waiting until a wheel was coming past, and it didn't happen, it didn't happen.
"In the very end, I see a Pirelli tyre next to me, and it's the one from Jasper.
"It just shows that we never give up. Maybe the start of our Tour was not good, but I won the Tour des Champs Elysees. I think it's pretty good."
Van der Poel said he did not know how he had found the strength to hold on.
"If there was one race I still wanted to win in my career, I have a few, of course, but this was one of them," he said.
"We have a saying in Dutch that it has to come from your toes.
"I don't know where this came from, but not from my toes!"
Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel secured his best ever Tour result with second place behind Pogacar and two stage victories.
He even won a mountain stage and proved to the doubters who had said that he would crack in the high mountains, that he is a worthy contender for overall Tour victory.
He said that he felt vindicated in his desire to try to win the Tour when critics have said that the time-trial specialist is not suited to Grand Tours -- despite him having won the Vuelta a Espana in 2022.
"Second plac, for me was more like the fact to prove towards myself that I did well to not let go my dream of stepping on the podium of Grand Tours as much as possible and aiming to try to win them," he said.
"Because that's my career goal.
"After this result, I think I've shown towards myself, my team and also to the outside world that I deserve to dream and aim for that."
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