From the start, Roglic was determined to fight for victory. The Slovenian backed up this ambition by riding up front throughout the race. When Roglic seemed to have a difficult moment on one of the many climbs, he fought his way back to the front.

Moments later, Pogacar accelerated and took off. Roglic squeezed every ounce of energy out of his tired legs in the finishing straight, and the result was third place. With the finish line in Bergamo, Roglic's era with Team Jumbo-Visma ended. He achieved 74 victories, including the final classification of a grand tour on four occasions. Roglic will ride for Bora next season.

"I gave everything today”, Roglic said. "My legs let me down, but I fought until the end. I suffered in the last 50 kilometres. I consider myself lucky to be on the podium. It's the first time I've done that in this race. I would have loved to end the era with this team in style, but unfortunately, that was not possible today.”

Roglic reflected on his time with the Dutch outfit. "It was a fantastic time with Team Jumbo-Visma. I can look back on it with pride. We went through a lot together over the last eight years. It was a great time. We also achieved a lot together last season. I finished this season with third place in Lombardy. It has been a rollercoaster of emotions, with many beautiful memories that will stay with me forever. It has been an excellent chapter in my life.”