VILLARS-SUR-OLLON, Switzerland (AP) — Tadej Pogacar warmed up for next month's Tour de France with a dominant victory in the Tour de Suisse on Sunday, and the cycling star did so in flamboyant style by winning the fifth and final stage.
The 27-year-old Slovenian is in ominous form heading into the July 4-26 Tour, where he'll try to win the showcase race for the fifth time.
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Tadej Pogacar, center, from Slovenia of UAE Team Emirates-XRG competes during the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, Switzerland, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, on Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
The winner of the stage Tadej Pogacar, of Slovenia, celebrates as he crosses the finish of the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
The winner of the stage Tadej Pogacar, of Slovenia, celebrates as he crosses the finish of the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
The winner of the stage Tadej Pogacar, of Slovenia, celebrates as he crosses the finish of the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
Pogacar won the opening stage of the Tour de Suisse, secured a 1-second victory over rival Mathieu van der Poel in the time trial on Saturday and won stage 5 on Sunday.
Pogacar caught Frenchman Lenny Martinez about 800 meters near the end of the final climb of the 151.1-kilometer (94-mile) trek to Villars-sur-Ollon.
"It was a super hard day,” Pogacar said. “The parcours (route) was really tough, and with the team we did a super good job.”
In the overall standings, Pogacar finished 6 minutes, 32 seconds ahead of Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz and 6:53 clear of Czech rider Mathias Vacek.
Pogacar secured a dominant win at the six-day Tour de Romandie last month, after strong performances in the one-day classics. In April, he clinched a third straight victory at Liège–Bastogne–Liège.
Pogačar also won Milan-San Remo and the Tour of Flanders — winning that race for a third time — and was narrowly beaten at Paris-Roubaix by Wout van Aert.
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Tadej Pogacar, center, from Slovenia of UAE Team Emirates-XRG competes during the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, Switzerland, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, on Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
The winner of the stage Tadej Pogacar, of Slovenia, celebrates as he crosses the finish of the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
The winner of the stage Tadej Pogacar, of Slovenia, celebrates as he crosses the finish of the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
The winner of the stage Tadej Pogacar, of Slovenia, celebrates as he crosses the finish of the fifth and final stage, a 151 km race with start and finish in Villars-sur-Ollon, at the 89th Tour de Suisse UCI World Tour cycling race, Sunday, June 21, 2026. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP)
