The first Monument of the season has almost arrived, with the 289km men’s Milan-San Remo set to play out on Saturday with World Champion Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) once again taking to the start line in Pavia to try and capture that illusive title but there will, of course, be a long list of the strongest riders in the peloton determined to stand in his way.
The length of the race, of course, always adds yet another layer of unpredictability to the event which has both climbers and sprinters among the list of protagonists. Mistakes are amplified by the accumulation of kilometres. A rider can pay dearly for extra energy spent during the six-plus hours on the bike when it comes down to the crucial final charge over Poggio and potentially decisive descent before the final dash to the line.
