Vilagarcía de Arousa – Dumbría
Distance:184.6km
Highest point: 270m
Category: Flat
Flat until the finish
Similar to stage 6, today’s parcours has no complications until the very final few kilometres, where the riders face the precipitous climb to the Mirador del Ezaro. Rated by Vuelta stage winner Gustavo César Veloso as "tougher than the climb in Valdepeñas de Jaén", where Joaquim Rodríguez put his rivals to the sword last year, the 1.8km ramp averages 13.5 per cent. Veloso believes that riders will opt for gearing similar to a stage up the Alto del Angliru. One stretch rears up to 30 per cent near the bottom, which is sure to blow the fast-moving bunch apart. Incredibly, this stage is categorised as flat…
Markel Irizar: "The roads in Galicia are super bumpy and super difficult. This is a new climb and it looks perfect for Joaquim Rodríguez. Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck are better on the longer climbs but "Purito" is a master on climbs like this.
-
'A wild day of racing' – First pro race in Europe and a bunny-hop enabled first podium for New Zealand's Ben Oliver at Vuelta a Andalucía
The mountain biker who turned pro on the road with Modern Adventure Pro Cycling claims third in sprint finish on opening stage of five-day race -
How Remco Evenepoel's missed chance at landing a statement performance on brutal UAE Tour climb makes the next races more essential in his Tour de France build-up – Analysis
Belgian loses big time and momentum from early-season victories after getting dropped on the first mountain test of the stage race -
Four French ProTeams among selection of 21 squads set to race fifth edition of Tour de France Femmes
Field includes all 14 WorldTour and seven second-tier squads for August 1-9 competition -
As it happened: opening stage of the Volta ao Algarve decided by messy bunch sprint
The peloton race 185.6km from Vila Real de Santo António to Tavira
