Profile of stage 15 of la Vuelta a España 2023(Image credit: ASO/Unipublic)
Route of stage 15 of la Vuelta a España 2023(Image credit: ASO/Unipublic)
Stage 15: Pamplona - Lekunberri
Date: September 10
Distance: 158.5km
Stage type: Hilly
Starting in Navarra’s main city, the final stage of the second week of the Vuelta a España 2023 should be a day favourable to the breakaway. The route includes a double ascent of Zuarrarrate with the final climb taking place just eight kilometres from the finish line, a perfect place to launch an attack. Stage 15 features 2,345 metres of elevation gain over 156.5 kilometres.
Heading west from Pamplona, the route takes a right turn in Estella after 52 kilometres on rolling terrain before tackling the first climb of the day, which makes its appearance eight kilometres later. The category 3 Puerto de Lizarraga (19.3 km long at 2.6%) crests at 1031 metres high, and is followed by a 500-metre drop on a 12km descent to Etxarri-Aranatz.
After heading eastward, the riders will turn north for the ascent of Puerto de Zuarrarrate (7.3km long at 4.8%) for the first time before a quick descent which includes two successive 180 turns leading into a right-hander into the short 29-km loop back to Zuarrarrate for the second time. Stage hunters will tackle the two u-turns inside of the final two kilometres before a final sharp left turn at 600 metres from the finish line in Lekunberri.
Between 2019 and 2021, the Emakumeen Nafarroako Women's Elite Classics finished in Lekunberri. Annemiek van Vleuten was the winner in 2020 and 2021.
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Lyne has been involved in professional cycling for more than 15 years in both news reporting and sports marketing. She founded Podium Insight in 2008, quickly becoming a trusted source for news of the North American professional cycling world. She was the first to successfully use social media to consistently provide timely and live race updates for all fans. She is proud to have covered men's and women's news equally during her tenure at the helm of the site. Her writing has appeared on Cyclingnews and other news sites.
