2.UWT
Stage race · 21 stages · 3469 km
★★★★★
Giro d'Italia
109th edition of the Corsa Rosa, May 8-31 2026. 21 stages covering 3,466 km with 49,150 m of climbing — eight flat sprint stages, seven medium-mountain days, seven summit finishes, and a single 40.2km individual time trial in Tuscany. Three opening stages in Bulgaria (the 16th foreign Grande Partenza in race history) before transferring to Italy via Calabria, Naples, the Apennines, Tuscany, Milan, and a brutal final week in the Alps and Dolomites with the return of the Passo Giau. Concludes in Rome on May 31.
§ Watch
Where to watch
⚠️ Spoiler warning: live streams and broadcaster home pages may show current standings. Disable autoplay & avoid sidebar recommendations on YouTube.
§ 02 — Stages
The route, day by day
1R
ROAD
Fri, May 8
Nessebar → Burgas
147km
FLAT
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2R🔥
ROAD
Sat, May 9
Burgas → Veliko Tarnovo
221km
HILLY
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3R
ROAD
Sun, May 10
Plovdiv → Sofia
175km
FLAT
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P
REST
Mon, May 11
Rest Day — Transfer to Italy
—km
Rest day with transfer from Bulgaria to southern Italy.
4R
ROAD
Tue, May 12
Catanzaro → Cosenza
138km
FLAT
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5R
ROAD
Wed, May 13
Praia a Mare → Potenza
203km
HILLY
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6R
ROAD
Thu, May 14
Paestum → Napoli
142km
FLAT
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7R🔥
MTN
QUEEN
QUEEN
Fri, May 15
Formia → Blockhaus
244km
MOUNTAIN · SUMMIT-FINISH
First mountain showdown — long day to the iconic Blockhaus summit.
8R🔥
ROAD
Sat, May 16
Chieti → Fermo
156km
HILLY
Tirreno-style hilly day with four categorised climbs ending atop Fermo.
9R🔥🔥
MTN
Sun, May 17
Cervia → Corno alle Scale
184km
MOUNTAIN · SUMMIT-FINISH
Apennine mountain stage with summit finish at Corno alle Scale.
P
REST
Mon, May 18
Rest Day
—km
First Italian rest day.
10R
ITT
Tue, May 19
Viareggio → Massa
42km
ITT
Long 42km individual time trial along the Tuscan coast — major GC test.
11R🔥
ROAD
Wed, May 20
Porcari → Chiavari
195km
HILLY
Hilly Ligurian stage with Passo del Termine, Colle di Gualtarola and the San Bartolomeo finale.
12R🔥
ROAD
Thu, May 21
Imperia → Novi Ligure
175km
FLAT
Sprint day with two categorised climbs in the second half.
13R🔥
ROAD
Fri, May 22
Alessandria → Verbania
189km
FLAT
Piemonte to Lago Maggiore with two Cat 3/4 climbs en route.
14R🔥🔥
MTN
Sat, May 23
Aosta → Pila
133km
MOUNTAIN · SUMMIT-FINISH
Alpine queen-stage prequel: short, sharp, five climbs ending at Pila.
15R🔥🔥
ROAD
Sun, May 24
Voghera → Milano
157km
FLAT
Pure sprint into Milan — last flat opportunity before the high mountains.
P
REST
Mon, May 25
Rest Day
—km
Second Italian rest day.
16R🔥
MTN
Tue, May 26
Bellinzona → Carì
113km
MOUNTAIN · SUMMIT-FINISH
Swiss mountain stage with the brutal Carì summit (11.8km @ 8%).
17R🔥🔥
ROAD
Wed, May 27
Cassano d'Adda → Andalo
202km
HILLY
Long transitional stage with an uphill finale to Andalo.
18R
ROAD
Thu, May 28
Fai della Paganella → Pieve di Soligo
171km
HILLY
Prosecco-country stage with the iconic Muro di Ca' del Poggio in the finale.
19R🔥🔥
MTN
Fri, May 29
Feltre → Alleghe
151km
MOUNTAIN · SUMMIT-FINISH
Dolomites queen stage — Passo Giau as Cima Coppi (2,305m).
20R
MTN
Sat, May 30
Gemona del Friuli → Piancavallo
200km
MOUNTAIN · SUMMIT-FINISH
Last mountain stage — Piancavallo climbed twice, second time as the summit finish.
21R
ROAD
Sun, May 31
Roma → Roma
131km
FLAT · CIRCUIT
Ceremonial finale in Rome — maglia rosa parades and a final sprint.
§ 03 — Startlist & Jerseys
Who to watch & what to watch for
Top Starters
01
J. Vingegaard
Team Visma \| Lease a Bike
02
J. Almeida
UAE Team Emirates - XRG
03
P. Magnier
Soudal Quick-Step
04
G. Ciccone
Lidl - Trek
05
C. Scaroni
XDS Astana Team
06
J. Milan
Lidl - Trek
07
J. Vine
UAE Team Emirates - XRG
08
M. Storer
Tudor Pro Cycling Team
09
F. Gall
Decathlon CMA CGM Team
10
F. Ganna
INEOS Grenadiers
11
T. Andresen
Decathlon CMA CGM Team
12
A. Yates
UAE Team Emirates - XRG
13
L. Fortunato
XDS Astana Team
14
J. Christen
UAE Team Emirates - XRG
Jerseys
Maglia Rosa
Pink Jersey
Overall GC leader — the iconic pink jersey of the Giro d'Italia.
Maglia Ciclamino
Cyclamen Jersey
Points classification leader — historically purple/cyclamen.
Maglia Azzurra
Blue Jersey
King of the Mountains — best climber across categorised climbs.
Maglia Bianca
White Jersey
Best Young Rider — top GC rider under 25.
§ 04 — GC Favourites
Fight for the overall
№ 01 · GC-CONTENDER
J. Vingegaard
Team Visma \| Lease a Bike
UCI #3★★★★★
№ 02 · GC-CONTENDER
J. Almeida
UAE Team Emirates - XRG
UCI #4★★★★★
№ 03 · ONE-DAY
P. Magnier
Soudal Quick-Step
UCI #11★★★★
№ 04 · CLIMBER
G. Ciccone
Lidl - Trek
UCI #13★★★★
№ 05 · ONE-DAY
C. Scaroni
XDS Astana Team
UCI #14★★★★
№ 06 · SPRINTER
J. Milan
Lidl - Trek
UCI #19★★★
№ 07 · TIME-TRIALIST
J. Vine
UAE Team Emirates - XRG
UCI #21★★★
№ 08 · CLIMBER
M. Storer
Tudor Pro Cycling Team
UCI #25★★★
№ 09 · CLIMBER
F. Gall
Decathlon CMA CGM Team
UCI #27★★★
№ 10 · TIME-TRIALIST
F. Ganna
INEOS Grenadiers
UCI #35★★
№ 11
T. Andresen
Decathlon CMA CGM Team
UCI #40★★
№ 12 · CLIMBER
A. Yates
UAE Team Emirates - XRG
UCI #43★★
§ 05 — Storylines
Narratives to watch
- Vingegaard vs Evenepoel — a likely first head-to-head Grand Tour duel between the Dane and the Belgian World Champion-elect, both reportedly using the Giro as their season's main focus.
- Foreign Grande Partenza in Bulgaria — first time the race has visited the Balkans, with three flat-to-rolling stages around Nessebar, Burgas, Veliko Tarnovo, Plovdiv and Sofia before the rest day transfer.
- Defending champion Simon Yates returns as Visma-Lease a Bike's leader option — first man since the Schleck era to defend a Grand Tour for the same team in a different year.
- Mauro Vegni's last route as race director — described as 'modern, balanced but tough' and explicitly engineered to entice Giro-Tour doubles in 2026.
- Eight flat stages give Jonathan Milan, Mads Pedersen, Tim Merlier and Jasper Philipsen a real chance at the maglia ciclamino — sprint duels could shape the first half of the race.
- Return of the Passo Giau in the Dolomites — last raced in 2021 when Egan Bernal solo'd to glory; cima Coppi territory if the snow allows.
§ 06 — Historical Context
Form book & lore
First held in 1909. The 2025 edition was won by Simon Yates (Visma-Lease a Bike). RCS Sport organises. 16th foreign Grande Partenza in race history.
§ 07 — Viewing Notes
When to tune in
First week: watch stage 7 to Blockhaus (244km of suffering) and stage 9 to Corno alle Scale. Second week opens with the Tuscan ITT (stage 10) and the only ITT of the race — pivotal for time-trialists like Evenepoel. Third week: stages 18, 19, 20 in the Alps/Dolomites with Passo Giau and Piancavallo will decide the maglia rosa before Sunday's Roman parade.