This Wednesday sees the start of the 51st edition of the Volta ao Algarve, the Portuguese competition that was considered the world’s best stage race on the UCI ProSeries circuit in 2023 and 2024, and which this year once again brings together some of the best cyclists in the international peloton.
Portimão, as has been the tradition in recent years, will host the opening stage, on a course of just over 190 kilometers that will take the 25 teams to the finish line in Lagos and which will have a sprint finish to open hostilities.
For the general classification riders, the second stage is of a different importance, with the start in Lagoa on Thursday and the already mythical finish at Alto da Foia in Monchique.
It’s 177.6 kilometers of pedalling, with a particularly tough final section – and a new one: unlike in previous years, the final climb is up the northern slope of the mountain, with less constant gradients and some more difficult sections.
In the last few meters before the finish line, the gradients reach 9.8 percent and before that, 3.5 kilometers from the end, there is the most complicated stage of the climb, with an average gradient of around ten percent.
Day three, return of the sprint. Friday’s stage links Vila Real de Santo António to Tavira, a journey of 183.5 kilometers that is designed to make the sprinters shine once again.
With the fourth stage comes uncertainty. On Saturday, the peloton starts in Albufeira and will cycle for around 175 kilometers to Faro. The design of the race could mean that the final victory is once again up for grabs for the sprinters – if they manage to get through a few tricky moments – but it could also go to the classics specialists or even the main contenders in the GC.
On a day when there’s already a passage through Malhão, the three mountain passes planned for the last 50 kilometers promise to offer even more spectacle.
The big news of this 51st stage of the Volta ao Algarve is reserved for the fifth and final day: the race will once again finish in Alto do Malhão, but this time with a 19.6-kilometer time trial starting in Salir.
Of these almost 20 kilometers, 17 will be practically flat and the last three will be uphill, with an average gradient of 9.2 percent.
There are 25 teams competing for the final victory in the Algarve, 13 of them from the top tier, the World Tour. Three are ProTeams and the nine continental teams are all Portuguese.
Top teams, top cyclists: the Algarve will be the “home” of some of the best in the sport for five days. First of all, there are some Portuguese riders, such as João Almeida and António Morgado, but there are also other elite international athletes: Jonas Vingegaard, Wout van Aert, Primož Roglič or Biniam Girmay are some of the names that will be cycling through southern Portugal from February 19 to 23.
SCHEDULE
19/02 | Portimão – Lagos | 192,2 km | 11h50-16h30
20/02 | Lagoa – Fóia | 177,6 km | 12h00-16h20
21/02 | Vila Real de Santo António – Tavira | 183,5 km | 12h00-16h20
22/02 | Albufeira – Faro | 175,2 km | 12h15-16h30
23/02 | Salir – Malhão (CRI) | 19,6 km | 13h15