‘I earn my own peanuts’ - Zigart fires back after Pogacar comparison

The exchange came after AG Insurance-Soudal confirmed that the Slovenian had suffered another fractured jaw at the Tour de l’Ardèche, an injury that is expected to bring her 2026 season to a premature end.

Under the team’s post about her crash, one follower wrote: “Pogi earns millions, fair play to you for being willing to race for peanuts and injuries. Take care of your health, dear Urska.”

“Exactly. Pogi earns his millions, while I earn my own ‘peanuts’,” Žigart replied.

She then pushed back against the suggestion that her own career should be viewed through the prism of Pogačar’s earnings, pointing to the criticism women can face when relationships with wealthy men come to an end.

“But if couples like us split up, then we women are always ‘evil bitches who only want money and did nothing to earn it’,” she wrote. “So... you look after yourself and your wife, and I’ll look after myself. Have a nice Sunday.”

The exchange comes as Žigart faces another spell on the sidelines following what has otherwise been one of the strongest seasons of her career.

Žigart crashed during stage three of the Tour de l’Ardèche, with further medical examinations revealing a new fracture to her jaw.

It is the second time she has suffered the injury this season. Žigart also fractured her jaw at the Tour de Suisse Women earlier in the summer, but returned to racing just six weeks later at the Tour de France Femmes.

Her latest injury is expected to rule her out of the World Championships in Montréal and could bring her season to an end altogether.

The timing is particularly unfortunate given the form Žigart had shown in the weeks leading up to the crash. After two stages of the Tour de l’Ardèche, she sat third overall and had spoken positively about her condition ahead of the World and European Championships.

The 29-year-old had also produced the best Grand Tour results of her career in 2026, finishing sixth overall at La Vuelta Femenina before taking eighth at the Giro d’Italia Women.

Žigart’s injury means both she and Pogačar are now expected to miss the World Championships after their seasons were disrupted by crashes. Pogačar has not raced since abandoning the Vuelta a España at the end of August after suffering a concussion, a displaced fracture of his left collarbone and a stable C7 cervical fracture while leading the race.

Before Žigart’s crash, Pogačar had been expected to travel to Montréal despite being unable to defend his world title, with the Slovenian planning to support his fiancée and the national team. Instead, both are now set to spend the final part of the season recovering from injury.