The 2026 Vuelta a España may not be heading for the Canary Islands, but with a week to go before the route is finally revealed on December 17, the latest rumours point to the inclusion of up to nine major summit finishes and an ultra-difficult route.
According to a report on Wednesday in AS, the Vuelta’s official newspaper, Wednesday evening’s route publication in Monaco will unveil what it said would be “the toughest Vuelta a España in 10 years” with up to nine summit finishes, all of them in stages with around 4,000 metres of vertical climbing each.
For now, all that is known is that it will start in Monaco on August 22 with a 9.6km individual time trial, the first opening solo effort since Primož Roglič took the opening stage of the Vuelta in the city of Burgos back in 2021.
This will be followed by a city centre, largely ceremonial, stage on the race’s last Sunday, likely concluding in the environs of one of Spain’s biggest tourist attractions, the Alhambra palace and fortress. September 13 will also mark the first time the Vuelta has ended outside Madrid – by far the most usual endpoint, with 79 finishes to date – since a concluding time trial in Santiago de Compostela back in 2021.
Opting to head for the regions of Valencia and then Andalucia will mean that – just as in the heat-blasted first part of 2024 – high summer temperatures will be an important factor. So, too, will be the series of summit finishes, with between seven and nine set to feature, according to AS.
Little is known which climbs will be used, but the dauntingly long ascent of Alto de Aitana near Alicante – last used in 2016 and…
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