Roglič "wins" inaugural Andorra Cycling Masters exhibition event
The inaugural Andorra Cycling Masters took place on Sunday, bringing four of the sport's best male riders to Andorra for a unique exhibition event. Tadej Pogačar, Isaac Del Toro, Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglič made the trip; Remco Evenepoel was reportedly invited, but all parties couldn't make the dates work on this occasion.
The day began with a time trial up the hors-catégorie Coll de la Gallina, followed by 15 laps of an urban circuit adding up to 32 km. The hill climb was won by Roglič with a time of 25:39, with Pogačar 20 seconds slower up the 8.23 km incline. Del Toro finished 2:26 down, and Vingegaard trailed by 3:45... In the mini crit that followed, all four came to the line together, where Del Toro out-lunged Roglič for first, Pogačar was third and Vingegaard cared not one jot in fourth. That meant that Roglič won the whole event, earning a special jersey for his efforts.
Was the event a success? It's hard to say. The idea of a mano-a-mano showdown sans team support is a fun one, but based on the time gaps, it didn't exactly bring the drama, or perhaps even much enthusiasm from the riders.
Regardless of its reception, there's more to come as the organisers promised a documentary as part of the package, following all four participants – and their families, apparently – from the moment they arrived in Andorra for the event.
