Although Tadej Pogacar appears on the verge of emulating cycling great Eddy Merckx, the Slovenian says he is in no rush to chase history, warning that the risk of burnout looms large in one of the most mentally and physically demanding sports.

As Tadej Pogacar relaxed on the sands of Seychelles, the 2025 Tour de France route was revealed last October. So was, it turned out, a theme of the Slovenian's pursuit of a fourth Tour title: the ghosts of Pogi's past.

Tadej Pogacar closed out a supreme 21-day performance to win the Tour de France in Paris on Sunday, crushing his rivals in the 3,400km slog to rack up a fourth title.

The event gave us showpiece finishes at Mur-de-Bretagne, Hautacam and Mont Ventoux, and plenty of action throughout a thoughtful, clever route — albeit one that turned out to be so challenging everyone was exhausted by the finish,

Tadej Pogacar claimed his fourth Tour de France title on Sunday, cementing his status as the most dominant rider of his generation and moving alongside Britain's Chris Froome on the all-time winners' list.

The roads were dangerously slippery after heavy rain. A fourth Tour de France title was all but won anyway, so finishing safely in the pack would do fine for Tadej Pogacar. Especially considering Sunday's final stage had already been neutralized for safety reasons and he just had to complete the race.

Tadej Pogacar rolled across the line atop La Plagne, wet and miserable. The yellow jersey appeared to weigh him down, like a suit of armor worn to guard against heavy blows which couldn’t reach him anyway.