Tour of Slovenia: Cavendish and Pogacar headline 2.HC race
19 June 2019 12:10
The Tour of Slovenia is marking its jump to 2.HC level this year with a line up that includes five WorldTour teams and a roster that includes Mark Cavendish, recent Tour of California winner Tadej Pogacar, double Giro d'Italia stage winner Pascal Ackermann and Esteban Chaves, who also won a stage of the Giro last month as he continues to return from the Epstein-Barr virus. Bora-Hansgrohe, Mitchelton-Scott, Bahrain-Merida, Dimension Data and UAE Team Emirates will represent the WorldTour ranks among the 19 teams that will take the start line in Ljubljana on Wednesday for five days of racing that conclude Sunday, June 23. Cavendish will find this route more to his liking than the Tour of California courses, which included more than 20,000 metres of climbing and a high-altitude finish at South Lake Tahoe. The Manxman will have some talented competition to get past as well if he wants to nail down his first win of the season. Likely to be contesting the sprints this week are Ackermann, whose form could be high after his Giro exploits. Luka Mezgec will keep Mitchelton-Scott's hopes afloat on the sprint stages, while Bahrain-Merida has Phil Bauhaus and Henrich Haussler.ADVERTISEMENT UAE Team Emirate's Pogacar, coming off an impressive win in California, is one of the top favourites for the overall win at his home race this week. Chaves, depending on his form after the Giro, could also be a contender alongside Mitchelton-Scott teammate Lucas Hamilton. Bora-Hansgrohe have Jay McCarthy, while Pogacar's hand is also bolstered by Slovenian teammate Jan Polanc. "Maybe it’s time that I change white jersey for the green one," Pogacar said of the race leader's green jersey in Slovenia. "Tour of Slovenia is my home race and big challenge for me. The race is very good and never easy. I want to show my best here. The third and fourth stages are where the gaps will be created. Each of us will do our best and then we’ll see what happens. All the riders on our team are in very good form, and I hope we’ll take some victories." Pogacar's teammate Polanc, who finished 14th overall at the Giro last month, said he's aiming for a stage win this week. The Route
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