Cycling superstar Tadej Pogacar (UAE TEAM EMIRATES) helped wrap up the 2025 European gran fondo season on Sunday in Spain’s Canary Islands at Gran Fondo Pico de las Nievas.

Wrapped in world champion rainbow stripes, the 4x Tour de France Champion and 2x UCI Road World Champion led out a 700 strong peloton from the city of Arucas, with most riders tackling the 125km +3348m gran fondo route, including the iconic climb to the summit of Pico las Nievas.

Local racer Blas Rivero (Z2 BIKE) earned overall victory across the two competitive segments with a cumulative time of 2:13:52. The 38 year-old 2023 Canary Islands Road and Time Trial champion defeated the German Daniel Kierok 2:14:14 and Piero Lorenzini 2:15:31 of Italy.

36 year-old Sandra Renschke of Germany earned the women’s victory in 2:55:59, followed closely by Slovenian Pia Bedene Kralj 2:56:12 and Anna Grabiela Myria Ternes 2:57:47, also from Germany.

Unfortunately, fans of Pogacar report they waited for hours on the course just to catch a glimpse of the superstar and his team as they climbed towards Pico las Nievas, but Team UAE Emirates never showed up.

Allegedly Pogacar and the team abandoned the ride, leaving at least one Instagram fan very disillusioned:

“A complete and utter fiasco. Pogi didn’t show up, a total lack of respect for the fans. And I’m not just saying that for myself, because I was there to support my friends, but there were lots of people from the mainland and foreigners waiting to see them. They really need to take a hard look at the image they projected towards those fans, who were on holiday on the island and came up to see them and didn’t get to see them.”

Complete Gran Fondo Pico de las Nievas results HERE

Photo Credit: Instagram/granfondopicodelasnievas

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