After three days in Italy and a stopover in France, the Vuelta a España finally rolls onto Spanish soil Wednesday with a 24-km team time trial in Figueres, Catalonia.
The route, set in Salvador Dalí’s hometown, offers little in the way of climbing—just over 100 metres of elevation—but promises high speeds and thin margins. Teams will power north for the first half of the course before looping back south toward the finish, where the road tilts gently uphill inside the final kilometre.
It marks the first team time trial in the Vuelta since 2023. It was…not popular with the riders.
This time, riders can expect a more straightforward contest. As in past editions, the team’s time will be taken on the fourth rider across the line, with later finishers credited individually.
The test could shape the general classification in its early stages, with powerful squads like UAE Emirates, Visma – Lease a Bike, Lidl-Trek and INEOS Grenadiers all bringing strong rosters. For others, the main goal will be damage control before the race heads deeper into Spanish terrain.
The stage could be crucial for Jonas Vingegaard’s Vuelta bid–but he has a helluva team backing him.
To watch the race, check into FloBikes.com. And as always, check back with Canadian Cycling Magazine.
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