After the buzz of the spring Classics, the Grand Tours are here. As always, the men’s cycle begins with the Giro d’Italia, which gets underway on Friday 8th May. A three-week odyssey around Italy (and Bulgaria) will follow, concluding outside the Colosseum in Rome on Sunday 31st May.
This year, the Corsa Rosa begins in the Balkans for the second consecutive year, this time in Bulgaria. From the banks of the Black Sea, the Giro will get underway with three stages in Bulgaria before making the trip across to southern Italy. Once on Italian soil, the race will feature summit finishes up Blockhaus, Carì and a double serving of Piancavallo on the final mountain stage.
There’s no Stelvio Pass this year, but the honour of Cima Coppi will be passed over to the Passo Giau instead. In terms of GC action, the race covers just 40km of individual time-trialling, while six summit finishes will surely help to decide who wins the maglia rosa in Rome.
The reigning champion Simon Yates has gone into retirement, so he won’t be here to defend his crown. Instead, his former teammate Jonas Vingegaard enters as favourite, with podium contenders including Adam Yates, Giulio Pellizzari, Jai Hindley and Egan Bernal.
Giro d’Italia 2026 key information
- Dates: Friday 8th May – Sunday 31st May
- Start: Nesebar, Bulgaria
- Finish: Rome, Italy
- Total distance: 3,459km
- Total elevation gain: 49,150m
- TV coverage: TNT Sports, HBO Max, SBS on Demand, Rai
- Most wins: Fausto Coppi, Alfredo Binda, Eddy Merckx (five)
- 2025 winner: Simon Yates (Visma-Lease a Bike)
Giro d’Italia 2026 route
For the first time in Grand Tour history, Bulgaria will host the three opening stages of the Giro d’Italia. On top of being the second consecutive Balkan Grande Partenza, the Bulgarian show opener will be the race’s most eastern venture on the European mainland.
After visiting the medieval cities of Bulgaria, the race returns to Italy for Stage 4 in Calabria. From there, the route will cover a sprinter-friendly set of stages through the southern half of the country before a leg-sapping 246km stage up to the summit of Blockhaus. In its wake, the following stages will be transitional as the riders cut across the mainland via the Marche en route to Tuscany.
After a rest day in the north east, the riders will face 40km against the clock, making this the only time-trial of the 2026 race. The remaining stages in week two are squashed into Italy’s northern corner, with a big day through the Valle d’Aosta to spread out the GC pecking order on Stage 14. The closing week, on the other hand, is packed with summit finishes, including Carì, Piani di Pezzè and a final mountain showdown of Piancavllo, which comes on two occasions on Stage 20.
From Friuli, we travel back south to Rome for the final stage’s sprint procession. As has been the case since 2023, the Corsa Rosa will conclude outside the iconic Colosseum.
In total, the 2026 Giro covers 3,459km with 49,150m of vertical climbing metres. That’s an increase in length compared to last year’s route, but a sharp 6,000m decrease in terms of climbing, both compared to the 2025 Giro route and the upcoming 2026 Tour de France.
Giro d’Italia 2026 stage-by-stage overview
Stage 1: Friday 8th May, Nesebar – Burgas, 156km
The Giro sets off from the banks of the Black Sea, from the ancient city of Nesebar, recognised by UNESCO. The opening stage is relatively flat, on a course around the coastal outskirts of Burgas with a couple of circuits to loop around, but it should end in a sprint.
Stage 2: Saturday 9th May, Burgas – Veliko Tarnovo, 220km
We stay close to the Black Sea for Stage 2, which heads out from Burgas. On a long 220km stage, we head inland and into the hills. The most influential climb will come in the final 20km at the Lyaskovets Monastery (3.5km at 7.5%).
From there, it’ll be downhill to the line, with a slight hint at a false flat arrival into Veliko Tarnovo, once the historic capital of Bulgaria.
Stage 3: Sunday 10th May, Plovdiv – Sofia, 174km
The final day on Bulgarian soil takes the peloton from historic Plovdiv towards a brief encounter through the mountains. There, the race will cross the 1,000m altitude barrier for the first time over the Borovets Pass, before winding down the difficulty in time for the stage’s conclusion in the Bulgarian capital Sofia.
Stage 4: Tuesday 12th May, Catanzaro – Cosenza, 144km
After a big transfer from the Balkans to the Italian mainland, the race will resume in Calabria.
The majority of the route is pan flat along the Adriatic coast, but a significant second-category ramp could weed the field out before reaching the finish in Cosenza.
Stage 5: Wednesday 13th May, Praia a Mare – Potenza, 204km
A classic breakaway day, Stage 5 is rolling and open-ended. Whatever happens, the riders better keep some power left for the final run into Potenza, capital of Basilicata.
Stage 6: Thursday 14th May, Paestum – Naples, 161km
The start town of Paestum will showcase a good bit of antiquity, with Greek temples galore to keep you interested during the race’s opening hour. The finale, on the other hand, is a bit more familiar as the race visits Naples for the fifth consecutive year.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Stage 7: Friday 15th May, Formia – Blockhaus, 246km
Stage 7 is rather ludicrous on paper. A 246km day with a great stonking mountain at the end.
Not only that, riders will have to tackle Roccaraso before winching themselves up Blockhaus for the race’s first summit finish.
Stage 8: Saturday 16th May, Chieti – Fermo, 159km
Stage 8’s a bit of a bumpy ride along the piedmont of Abbruzzo and the Marche, but nothing major. The uphill finish to Fermo should produce some fireworks.
Stage 9: Sunday 17th May, Cervia – Corno alle Scale, 184km
The opening week closes with a typical first week Giro d’Italia stage. The rarely used Corno alle Scale was last used in 2004, when reigning champion Gilberto Simoni claimed an early win.
The whole thing, both climbs included, comes to 27.5km at an average gradient of 4.4%. It’s not as demanding as Blockhaus, but it could provide quite the showcloser to the opening week.
Stage 10: Tuesday 19th May, Viareggio – Massa, 40km (ITT)
The TT is as straightforward as you can imagine. It’s dead flat down the Tuscan coast, but at 40km in length, it might be the longest we’ll get this year.
Stage 11: Wednesday 20th May, Porcari – Chiavari, 178km
We continue to roll down the Tuscan coast on Stage 11, which makes a passing visit to the iconic Cinque Terre in its final phase.
With a rolling profile like this, the breakaway may get the better of the peloton.
Stage 12: Thursday 21st May, Imperia – Novi Ligure , km
We open Stage 12 on the parcours of Milan-San Remo, just a few kilometres away from the foot of the Cipressa. Sticking in Liguria, it’s likely the stage will end in a sprint.
Stage 13: Friday 22nd May, Alessandria – Verbania, 186km
This middle week is starting to look awfully samey, at least from the profiles.
Thankfully, the vistas will be slightly different as the course winds along the banks of Lago Maggiore in its closing kilometres. A couple of kickers could split the group before a dive down into Verbania, the hometown of Filippo Ganna.
Stage 14: Saturday 23rd May, Aosta – Pila, 133km
Stage 14’s opening test of Saint-Barthélemey (19.5km at 6.9%) should be an early wake-up call on this day filled with mountain passes through the Valle d’Aosta. With plenty of KOM points on offer up Lin Noir and Verrogne, the breakaway will be dangling off the front by the time the race hits its grand finale up Pila (17km at 7.1%).
Stage 15: Sunday 24th May, Voghera – Milan, 136km
The second week concludes in Lombardy and returns to Milan, host city of the 2026 Winter Olympics and former finishing city of the Giro. This year, it makes its first cameo in five seasons, but in the form of a four-lap sprinters’ finale.
Stage 16: Tuesday 26th May, Bellinzona – Carì, 113km
After the final rest day, the Giro heads to Switzerland for a day wholly on neutral Swiss ground. The profile has a couple of bumps along the way, crossing a two-part circuit of the Torre and Leontica climbs.
The summit finish to Carì is a steep one, enduring just over 11km at an average gradient of 8%. It’s not been used as a Giro venue before, but Adam Yates claimed a stage win atop this peak back at the 2024 Tour de Suisse.
Stage 17: Wednesday 27th May, Cassano d’Adda – Andalo, 200km
We brush past Bergamo during the opening section of Stage 17 before reaching the foothills of the Dolomites. It’s not much of a mountain stage, but there’s a slight hill to round things off in Andalo.
Stage 18: Thursday 28th May, – Pieve du Soligno, 167km
The stage crosses the Dolomites, teasing us through the valley roads instead of tackling major passes. Instead, we close the stage near Treviso in the small village of Pieve di Soligo.
Funnilly enough, the final climb up the Muro di Cá del Poggio will also feature on the second stage of the Giro Women, which touches down a week later.
Stage 19: Friday 29th May, Feltre – Piani di Pezzè, 151km
A razortooth stage through the Dolomites, this profile equates to 5,000m in elevation gain, granting it five-star status in the Giro’s roadbook.
There’s barely a metre of flatland after the first 40km of racing, starting at the Passo Duran (12.1km at 8.2%). The Passo Giau (9.8km at 9.5%) is the real star of the show and stands as the Cima Coppi, offering maximum points and a cash prize for the first rider to crest its summit. The stage takes a bit of a change in elevation after that, however, and will conclude on the bite-sized – but steeper – climb of Piani di Pezzè (4.9km at 9.9%).
Stage 20: Saturday 30th May, Gemona del Friuli – Piancavallo, 199km
The final mountain stage starts with a commemoration to a 1976 earthquake in Gemona del Friuli. From there, the race crosses through the flatland of Friuli before the big showcloser: double Piancavallo (13km at 8%).
The closing climb will be tackled from the same side – unlike Alpe d’Huez at the 2026 Tour – before crowning the champion elect after 199km in the saddle.
Stage 21: Sunday 31st May, Rome – Rome, 131km
We return to Rome for the fifth year in a row. There’s less chance of a Pope cameo this year, but the nine laps around ‘the Eternal City’ will be good for photos at least.
Giro d’Italia 2026 favourites
Given the reigning Giro champion has hung up his cleats in the past couple of months, the Trofeo Senza Fine is up for grabs.
While that might be the case, the overwhelming favourite is a former teammate of Simon Yates, Jonas Vingegaard. The Dane has never made the trip to the Giro d’Italia, but this year he enters with the ambition of following Tadej Pogacar’s 2024 achievement of winning the Giro on debut, then targeting the Tour de France. The latter is up for debate, but the former is certainly achievable here, especially with Visma’s strong fleet of mountain domestiques.
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe come as the strongest alternative. Their leader looks set to be 22-year-old Giulio Pellizzari, who finished in sixth place last year. The Italian has been impressive all year, having won the Tour of the Alps and finished second at Tirreno-Adriatico. If he needs support, or a GC backup plan, look to Jai Hindley. The 2022 Giro winner will have fond memories from Blockhaus, which features on Stage 9. This year’s route only has one time-trial, so the Australian could be in the mix for a podium spot regardless of how Pellizzari goes.
Netcompany Ineos’s Egan Bernal looks to be in good shape again. The Colombian has enjoyed a string of strong results coming into the Giro, including a podium finish at the Tour of the Alps. His squad looks strong too, with Thymen Arensman here to play domestique.
Otherwise, outsiders include Tour de France top five finisher Felix Gall, Vuelta podium merchant Enric Mas and UAE Team Emirates XRG leader Adam Yates.
Cyclist’s favourites
- ★★★★★: Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike)
- ★★★★: Guilio Pellizzari (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe)
- ★★★: Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Enric Mas (Movistar), Egan Bernal (Netcompany Ineos), Felix Gall (Decathlon-CMA CGM)
- ★★: Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Thymen Arensman (Netcompany Ineos), Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek), Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious), Alessandro Pinarello (NSN Cycling Team)
- ★: Aleksandr Vlasov (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Einer Rubio (Movistar), Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling), Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Ben O’Connor (Jayco-AlUla)
How to watch the Giro d’Italia 2026
All 21 stages of the Giro d’Italia 2025 will be available to watch in the UK and Ireland on TNT Sports. This will include ‘The Breakaway’ analysis show that will air before and after each stage. If you want an ad-free alternative or to watch on the go, you can stream the racing on HBO Max.
In the United States, the racing will be available on Max; FloBikes will provide the coverage over in Canada; and for Australians, the Giro will be shown live on on SBS.
If it’s not being shown in your country, you may be able to watch coverage using a VPN – Virtual Private Network – which allows users to mask their IP address and watch geo-blocked content, provided they don’t need to pay for a subscription. This is also helpful for watching paid-for coverage while abroad in countries without access.