Pogačar claims fourth win at Liège-Bastogne-Liège
Slovenian cyclist Tadej Pogacar of UAE Team Emirates-XRG celebrates on the finish line after winning the men elite race of the Liege-Bastogne-Liege UCI World Tour, 259,5km from Liege, over Bastogne to Liege. Eric Lalmand/Belga/dpa Tadej Pogačar won the Liège-Bastogne-Liège cycling Momument for the fourth time on Sunday to move within one of the race record five titles from former great Eddie Merckx. Slovenian star Pogačar prevailed after 259.
9 kilometres in Belgium ahead of French super talent Paul Seixas who he dropped at the last climb. Belgian contender Remco Evenepoel won a sprint for third place after being unable to follow Pogačar and Seixas with some 35km left. Evenepoel was earlier part of a leader group which at times was four minutes ahead of Pogačar and the rest of the peleton.
Pogačar won the tough race with 11 climbs for an overall ascent of 4,400 metres for the third time in a row after a first triumph in 2021. The four time Tour de France champion now has 12 wins overall from the five Monuments. Three of them came this year, the others being a first Milan-Sanremo success and third at the Tour of Flanders.
Paris-Roubaix is the only Monument he hasn't won, coming second last year and a few weeks ago. Led by Merckx, only three men have won all five in their career. The breakaway group pictured during the men elite race of the Liege-Bastogne-Liege UCI World Tour, 259,5km from Liege, over Bastogne to Liege.
Maarten Straetemans/Belga/dpa