For Italy fan Pogacar, the Vuelta a España has good news: the race starts this weekend.

According to a news release sent out by the organisers on Monday afternoon, the Vuelta a España will start in Piedmont, Italy, as planned in 2025. The Spanish stage race is modelled after the Tour de France, whose first stage took place in Italy in 2024.

“At the base of the mountains, with the Alps in the background, in a very special edition to mark the race’s 90th anniversary.” Starting on August 23, the first three stages will all take place in Italy. After those stages, the cyclists will go back to Spain.

The first stage of La Vuelta 25 will start in Torino – Reggia di Venaria and go to Novara. It will be 183 kilometres long and include a climb over the Bienca-Tomalino Pass. The second stage will start in Alba and end 157 kilometres later in Limone Piemonte. This will be the first uphill finish of the race. The third stage will take place in Italy, going from San Maurizio Canavese to Ceres over 139 kilometres. It will include a climb over the Issiglio Pass.

Is Pogacar going to be there?

We’ll start the fourth stage in Susa, Italy, and go to Spain from there, but the organisation hasn’t said how yet. Since crossing into Spain is still a fair amount of cycling, the end line will have to be in France. After a week of pizza and pasta, let’s get some croissants. “The Piedmont region is full of mountains, history, and natural beauty. It’s a new country added to the list of places the Spanish Grand Tour has seen.” It also makes the ties between Europe’s top cycling countries stronger.

Still, this is only the sixth time that the Vuelta a España has gone outside of Spain. Before, the honour went to Lisbon (twice), Nîmes, and the Dutch cities of Assen and Utrecht. There will be a seventh international start in 2026; Monaco has already been chosen to host. This is Tadej Pogacar at the start of the race in 2025. This is the only grand tour he hasn’t won yet.