If Primož Roglič finally succeeds in conquering the Tour de France this summer, at 34 years and nine months, he won’t just become the race’s second oldest ever winner. He’ll also have finally laid a good many ghosts of missed opportunities and misfortunes in the Tour, and elsewhere, to rest.
To understand how ill-starred Roglič’s relationship with the Tour has been, you have to rewind to 2020, of course, and how clearly he looked to be on track to victory that year. Indeed, when he crossed the finish line to claim the stage 4 win at Orcieres-Merlette - which, amazingly for a rider as successful as Roglič, remains his most recent victory at the Tour - it had all the feel of a hefty down payment on a serious bid to triumph overall.
