The Japan Times - Tour de France favourite Pogacar 'fully recovered' from Covid

"I fell ill 10 days ago. I had Covid and there was a little question mark but I am fully recovered," the Slovenian told a press conference in Florence.

Pogacar was Tour de France champion in 2020 and 2021 and is one of the favourites for this year's race which gets underway in the Italian city on Saturday.

"It wasn't so bad. It was just a cold that passed quite quickly," the Team UAE rider told journalists.

"Covid is no longer as virulent, especially if you've had the virus before. I've already had it once, maybe twice even, I don't remember."

The 25-year-old fell ill during a training camp at Isola 2000 in the southern French Alps.

His otherwise "perfect" preparation was also upset by the death of his grandfather, and he returned to Slovenia for the funeral.

Pogacar goes into the 21-day race in red-hot form after winning the Giro d'Italia in May.

Pogacar will battle two-time defending champion Jonas Vingegaard, the Dane who pushed him into the runner-up spot in the past two editions.

He could also become the first rider since Marco Pantani in 1998 to complete the Giro-Tour double in the same year.

Everyone has designated him as the big favourite for the Tour, starting with Belgian rider Remco Evenepoel who deemed him "unbeatable" if he remains "safe and sound".

"The Giro-Tour double is difficult to achieve. It's a big challenge but I'm ready to take it on," he said Thursday.

K.Tanaka--JT