Cycling: the mountain at the center of the Tour of Spain 2023, discover the complete route

Europe 1 with AFP 9:36 p.m., January 10, 2023

Renowned for its appalling slopes and its explosive arrivals, the Vuelta 2023 will again this year offer an edition with marked relief, with in particular ten arrivals at altitude and the discovery of many new passes, and will cross three countries: Spain, Andorra and France. 

"The mountain is part of the DNA of the Vuelta and will still make us vibrate in 2023", assured Javier Guillén, the director of the Vuelta, during the presentation of the route on Tuesday at the Palace of Catalan Music in Barcelona.

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Depart through the streets of Barcelona

After a team time trial as a start in the streets of Barcelona and a second stage which will also end in the Catalan capital, the peloton will be dancing from the third stage, which will take the riders to Andorra with an unprecedented arrival at the ski resort of Arinsal.

After a return via Catalonia and then the region of Valencia, the peloton will return to the mountains during the sixth stage, which will finish for the second time in the history of the Tour of Spain at the top of Javalambre.

After a first day of rest, the second week will start with a flat individual time trial that will please the specialists in the streets of Valladolid, then head to the Pyrenees.

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"A milestone in history"

Three days later, the 13th stage will take the peloton to France, with a start at the Formigal ski resort, very close to the border, and an unprecedented finish at the top of the legendary Col du Tourmalet, with its 17 kilometer climb to 7.4% average.

"Arriving at the Tourmalet will be a milestone in the history of our race," Guillén said on Tuesday.

The next day, the riders will cross the Pyrenees to return to Spain, with two other off-category passes and an unprecedented finish at Port de Belagua (1st category).

The second day of rest will be used to recharge the batteries, because the last week will not be easy.

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An arrival at Angliru, a mythical summit

Along the Cantabrian coast in northern Spain, the peloton will arrive in Asturias on stage 17, with a promising finish at Angliru, one of the most mythical peaks of the Spanish loop.

Preceded by two 1st category passes, this formidable climb, with its 12 kilometers at 10% (and gradients of up to 23%!) could be the arbiter of the 2023 edition, after a Vuelta-2022 won by the young Belgian Remco Evenepoel, intractable over the last two weeks of racing, who ended the reign of Primoz Roglic, winner of the three previous editions.

The penultimate stage will be nothing short of a walk: with its ten third-category passes and a profile of classics, this 20th leg-breaking stage will be used to widen the last gaps... or to create the last surprises, before the traditional arrival in Madrid.