Tour of Slovenia, Stage 2: Battling Through a Hard-Fought Day

Stage 2 of the Tour of Slovenia delivered one of the toughest tests of the race so far, as a high-speed split and a dangerous crash reshaped the front of the race well before the finish.

With around 30km remaining, a crash on a fast downhill just ahead of a short 2km climb caused chaos through the bunch. The pace had already been high, and the move split the peloton into pieces, with only 40-50 riders able to stay in what became the decisive front group. Team Novo Nordisk found itself caught on the wrong side of the split, a position that proved impossible to recover from on the day.

The race was neutralized in the aftermath of the crash, and racing resumed with the front group holding a one-minute advantage. Despite a determined effort to bring it back across to the finish, the gap held.

Antonio Polga, the team’s highest finisher on the day, summed it up honestly afterward:

“There was, at 30km to go, a bad crash on a downhill just before a 2km climb, and the group split before it after a really high pace. Only 40-50 guys remained in the front, and unfortunately we were in a bad position for it. The race was neutralized, and we restarted with a one-minute gap to the first group. We tried to close it back down to the finish, but it wasn’t possible.”

The team will look to regroup and find opportunities as the race continues tomorrow from  Maribor  to  Celje over 133.5 kilometers.