Lefevere reveals how Quick-Step mechanics secretly studied Pogacar’s bike during sauna visit

Writing in his weekly column for Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad, former Soudal Quick-Step boss Patrick Lefevere revealed how four mechanics inspected, weighed and measured Pogačar’s bike during a winter stay at the Suitopia hotel in Spain.

The story dates back around two years, when Pogačar had come to visit his partner Urška Žigart, who was staying at the same hotel as Lefevere’s team.

Pogačar arrived by bike and asked whether he could leave it in Soudal Quick-Step's bike room while he and Žigart went to the sauna.

“As soon as Pogi [Pogačar] was out of sight, our mechanics jumped on that bike,” Lefevere said. “There were four of them. They weighed everything, measured everything and analysed everything.”

According to Lefevere, nothing was taken apart, although the mechanics were naturally interested in the details of the bike ridden by the world’s best cyclist.

“From what I heard afterwards, they were not far from it,” he joked. “Pogačar had probably never considered that he might be giving away any trade secrets, but no mechanic with a bit of professional pride is going to leave the Tour winner’s bike standing in the corner without having a look.”

There was no major discovery. Lefevere said Colnago had once had a reputation for producing bikes that were slightly heavier than some of its rivals, but that was no longer the case by then.

The detail that stood out most was Pogačar’s position on the bike.

“Our mechanics noticed the saddle setback,” Lefevere said. “Compared with the bottom bracket, Pogačar appeared to sit quite far forward.”

That, Lefevere said, was about as much as the mechanics could establish during one sauna visit.

“And for anyone still wondering after all those victories,” Lefevere added, “our inspection showed that there was no motor in the bike.”

The anecdote also reinforced Lefevere’s impression of Pogačar away from racing. He admits he has never really got to know the Slovenian, but says the few occasions on which he has seen him away from the cameras have only strengthened the image of a rider who remains unusually unaffected by his status.

“I’ve never really spoken to Pogačar, so I can’t say that I know him,” Lefevere said. “But I have seen him a few times when there were no cameras around. Then you see the same simple guy who could just as easily be your neighbour.”

During those winter visits to the Suitopia hotel, Pogačar and Žigart would often simply sit together in the lobby, largely unnoticed by anyone without a close interest in cycling.

“If you’re not into cycling, you would never guess that the guy sitting there in a hoodie is the best cyclist in the world,” Lefevere said.

For Lefevere, that apparent normality is part of what makes Pogačar’s popularity so striking given how relentlessly he wins. He describes him as having “the greatest hunger for victory since Eddy Merckx”, but does not believe that appetite has made him difficult to like.

“You can say he handles his public relations well, but I think it only works because it isn’t really PR,” Lefevere said.