Pogacar’s mountain train has lost one of its familiar faces. Pavel Sivakov, 29, who spent the last three seasons riding in support of the Slovenian at UAE Team Emirates-XRG, will join Decathlon CMA CGM from 2027 on a deal running through 2029, the French team announced on Tuesday.
The French-naturalised rider, who came through at Ineos between 2019 and 2023 before his move to UAE, has become one of Pogacar’s go-to men in the high mountains, pacing the five-time Tour de France champion through decisive climbs at the Grand Tours.
Decathlon put Sivakov’s top-level experience at the heart of the announcement.
“An experienced rider, Pavel Sivakov joins our project through 2029,” the team said in a statement relayed by AFP. “A top-class reinforcement who will bring all his expertise and experience at the highest level to serve the team.”
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A roster rebuilt around Paul Seixas
Sivakov’s arrival is one of two confirmations on the same day in a push aimed at Paul Seixas, the 20-year-old French prodigy Decathlon are shaping as their Grand Tour leader.
Earlier on Tuesday, the team confirmed the return of Australian Ben O’Connor on a contract through 2028. O’Connor had left Decathlon at the end of 2024 after four seasons that produced a Tour de France stage win in 2021 and a Vuelta a España stage win in 2024.
Multiple outlets describe the double signing as the backbone of Decathlon’s bid to put Seixas within reach of Pogacar at the biggest races.
Pogacar’s 2027 programme
The timing stings for UAE. Days earlier, Pogacar had publicly set out his targets for 2027: the Tour de France, the World Championships at Sallanches and Domancy, and a return to the Vuelta a España he was leading in August when a stage-eight crash left him with a fractured collarbone, a stable cervical fracture, and concussion.
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A sixth Tour win would move Pogacar clear of Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, and Miguel Indurain, with whom he is currently level at five.
“I’ve now been training regularly for a week, which is a month earlier than in previous years,” Pogacar said of his recovery, having turned down a late-season start at the European Championships in Slovenia because, he explained, “the fear of crashing again put me off.”
Sivakov’s Decathlon contract starts in 2027 and runs through 2029.
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