On Saturday 26 August, the Tour of Spain, also known as the Vuelta, begins in the Spanish metropolis of Barcelona. Three weeks later, on Sunday 17 September, the winner will be crowned in the capital Madrid.
The Vuelta
The Vuelta is the Tour of Spain, so logically most of the action takes place on Spanish soil. However, there are also important arrivals in Andorra (Arinsal) and France (Tourmalet) this year. In this 78th edition of the Vuelta, the riders will ride 21 stages, covering a total distance of 3153.8 kilometres. The first stage is a team time trial. A total of 22 teams and 176 riders will start there. That stage is still quite flat, but that will soon change.
The course looks promising for climbers. In total, there are nine arrivals uphill. The first real mountain stage will be on day three, when the peloton heads into the Spanish Pyrenees. The run-up is not that terrifying, but the danger is in the tail: two consecutive climbs, first the Coll d’Ordino (17.3 kilometres at 7.7 percent) and then the finish in Arinsal (in the country of Andorra).
We also get an impressive climb in front of us on stage 6. The finish is then on the Pico del Buitre, after a 10.9-kilometre climb at an average of 8 percent.
With only one day in between, a sprint stage of about 201 kilometres, another mountain stage follows. And not just any one: riders have to go up and down all day in stage 8, with five categorised climbs. The finish will then be on the Xorret de Catí, after 3.9 kilometres at an average gradient of 11.4 percent with some parts exceeding 20 percent.
In stage 13, on Friday 8 September, the riders tackle the mythical Col du Tourmalet. Those who survived that one get another mountain stage right away the following day, and a few days later the nightmare Altu de L’Angliru already shows up. This climb, of 12.4 kilometres at 9.8 per cent, is a dreaded finish for climbers and non-climbers alike.
Soudal-Quick Step
Can young Remco Evenepoel repeat his performance from last year? His time trial rainbow jersey already shows a very high level anyway. Nor can you forget his victory in the Clasica San Sebastian. Evenepoel enters the Vuelta in incredible form, which he will also want to make the most of.
For Remco Evenepoel, the 10th stage on Tuesday 5 September will be crucial. He will then have to prove himself in the only individual time trial, in the streets of Valladolid. Hopefully we won’t get a repeat of the Giro, the Italian round in which he had to quit after a positive COVID test. Slovenian Primoz Roglic managed to take the win then.
Evenepoel’s teammates are also already known: the Soudal-Quick Step team is sending him to Spain along with Pieter Serry and Louis Vervaecke, also two Belgians who already went with him to the Giro. To up the climbing level, they are taking Jan Hirt, Mattia Cattaneo and James Knox. Furthermore, we will also see Andrea Bagioli and Casper Pedersen at work.
Jumbo-Visma
Primoz Roglic, winner of the Tirreno-Adriatico, the Tour of Catalonia and the Tour of Italy, seems to be all set to take on Remco Evenepoel. He also secured a win in the Tour of Burgos last Saturday, further confirming his excellent form. The Slovenian has already won the Vuelta three times, but had to give up last year due to a heavy fall.
Roglic will form a rock-solid duo together with Jonas Vingegaard. The Dane recently won the Tour de France, which automatically puts him in the running for this year’s Vuelta as well. The team is going for the singular mission of winning all three grand tours in a season.
Joining them will be: Sepp Kuss, Wilco Kelderman, Robert Gesink, Dylan van Baarle, Attila Valter and Jan Tratnik. For the climbs, it is mainly Kuss and Kelderman who will have to prove their worth.
Other challengers
Who else can take on Remco Evenepoel? Some names that will definitely try are Enric Mas and Juan Ayuso. Last year’s 2nd and 3rd place finishers are more than ready to do better this year. Mas dropped out of the Tour as early as the first stage, so can start the Vuelta fully rested.
Young Spaniard Ayuso would be only too happy to secure another victory for his home country. He made his debut last year and immediately finished third. So it remains to be seen whether he can maintain that level this year.
