The heart of Vila Real de Santo António came alive this morning to watch the official start of the 52nd edition of the Volta ao Algarve cycling race, in an opening stage rarely seen in recent years.
The city had not hosted the first stage of the Algarve race for some time, but it was once again the scene of the first pedal strokes in 2026. It was from Praça Marquês de Pombal that more than 150 cyclists set off for the sprint finish in Tavira, won by Paul Magnier. And while there was plenty of excitement in Vila Real de Santo António, Avenida Zeca Afonso in Tavira was filled with a crowd rarely seen before, eager to witness the thrilling outcome of the first round of the Portuguese race.
Contte shone in the mountains, Hugo Nunes in the golden kilometer
The early moments of the day saw a compact peloton, but after ten kilometers the race heated up and the breakaway of the day formed, with nine cyclists, all from Portuguese teams.
The peloton, with Soudal Quick-Step setting the pace, never let the breakaway get too far ahead, with about two minutes separating the two groups. It was with a slightly smaller advantage that the nine riders at the front passed the first mountain climb of the day, a third category climb in Mercador: Tomas Contte (Aviludo – Louletano – Loulé) passed in front, ahead of Enzo Leijnse (Anicolor/Campicarn) and João Silva (Feira dos Sofás – Boavista).
The pace remained steady for the next few kilometers, only picking up again near the second mountain climb, in Faz Fato: the peloton, with Alpecin-Premier Tech already working hard, closed in, and at the front a trio broke away from the rest: Tomas Contte, Viacheslav Ivanov (Feirense – Beeceler), and Enzo Leijnse (Anicolor / Campicarn).
Contte took the lead again and ensured that he was the first to wear the Blue Jersey – Save Water, in the mountain classification. Ivanov was second in this second climb, Leijnse third.
In the peloton for most of the day, Hugo Nunes decided to bridge the gap to the front of the race after passing through Faz Fato, just in time to shine in the golden kilometer. The Credibom / La AlumÍnios / Marcos Car rider attacked from the breakaway and took the lead in the first two intermediate sprints of the hot spot. Jan Tratnik (Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe) won the third intermediate sprint.
Meanwhile, Juan Ayuso also took the opportunity to send a message to the competition: tipped as one of the big favorites for the overall victory, the Spaniard, who is making his debut for Lidl-Trek, took bonifications at the last two intermediate sprints.
Magnier won the battle of the strong men
From then on, it was a battle for position until the finish line, with the teams trying to position their fast men in the best possible way. Alpecin-Premier Tech looked like the big favorite to win, with Jasper Philipsen, but it was Paul Magnier, the Frenchman from Soudal Quick-Step, who stole the show.
Magnier was the fastest to the finish line, ahead of Jordi Meeus (Red Bull-BORA-Hansgrohe), who had won at the same location a year ago, and Pavel Bittner of Team Picnic PostNL.
“It’s a good start to the season. I’m very happy with the team’s work. Tomorrow will be too difficult for me, but I’ll do my best to help the team and then focus on the other sprint on Saturday”, said Magnier after the stage.
Paul Magnier won the first stage and is thus the first Yellow Jersey – Turismo do Algarve of the 52nd Volta ao Algarve. Overall, the young Frenchman has a four-second lead over Meeus, in second place, and Hugo Nunes, whose strong performance at the hot spot puts him on the podium at this stage.
Magnier also holds the Green Jersey – Crédito Agrícola, for the points classification, and the White Jersey – IPDJ, for the youth classification. Tomas Contte, meanwhile, will start the second day of the Algarve race wearing the Blue Jersey – Save Water.
The Volta ao Algarve continues on Thursday with the first mountain finish: the second stage connects Portimão to Alto da Foia, covering a distance of 147.2 kilometers.
Schedule
February 18 | Vila Real de Santo António – Tavira | 183.5 km | 12:00–4:27 p.m.
February 19 | Portimão – Foia | 147.2 km | 12:45–4:25 p.m.
February 20 | Vilamoura – Vilamoura (CRI) | 19.5 km | 1:05 p.m. (provisional)
February 21 | Albufeira – Lagos | 175.1 km | 11:00 a.m.–3:20 p.m.
February 22 | Faro – Malhão | 92.4 miles | 12:05 p.m.–3:42 p.m.