The 2026 Giro d'Italia starts in Bulgaria this coming Friday, the race's third foreign Grande Partenza in five years. The prestigious three-week, 21-stage race is the opener in the trio of Grand Tours, followed by the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.
After three days on Bulgarian soil the route returns to southern Italy, from where it gradually makes it's way north to the mountains and the crucial final week of racing. See our 2026 Giro d'Italia route page for analysis of every stage.
>>>> Giro d'Italia Women: Everything you need to know
Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) will start as the overwhelming favourite. The two-time Tour de France winner won last year's Vuelta and so travels to the Giro looking to complete the set. The Dane will then travel to the Tour in July to attempt the Giro / Tour double, something that has only been done by eight male riders going back to Fausto Coppi in 1949.
Vingegaard's path to victory was made a little easier in the week's before the race as many other GC contenders including Joao Almeida, Richard Carapaz and Mikel Landa, pulled out, citing injury and illness. Their absence also paves the way for new riders to break through, like Red Bull Bora-Hansgrohe's Giulio Pellizzari, recent winner of the Tour of the Alps.
It's not just the GC action to keep you watching through the full 21 stages, with a strong sprinting field assembled for the race, including Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek), Paul Magnier (Soudal-Quick-step), Kaden Groves (Alpecin - Premier Tech) and Ethan Vernon (NSN Cycling).
This year, Cycling Weekly will be covering the race with daily race reports, reactions following each stage, and analysis as the Italian showdown progresses. Scroll down to find the latest news and stories from the race.
Read more: Giro d'Italia 2026 route | Giro d'Italia 2026 start list | Giro d'Italia 2026 contenders
Giro d'Italia 2026: Key details
Date |
8 - 31 May |
Total distance |
3459km |
Number of stages |
21 |
Start location |
Nessebar, Bulgaria |
Finish location |
Rome, Italy |
UCI ranking |
WorldTour |
Edition |
109th |
Total climbing / elevation gain |
49,150m |
Leader's jersey colour |
Pink (Maglia Rosa) |
Last winner |
Simon Yates (GBr) |
TV coverage (UK) |
TNT Sports |
TV coverage (US) |
Max |
Giro d'Italia 2026: The route
The Giro d'Italia 2026 begins with three stages in Bulgaria, as already announced, starting on 8 May, before 18 stages from the south to the north of Italy, via Naples, the Apennines, Milan, the Alps and the Dolomites. The 109th Giro finishes in Rome on 31 May.
Read more: Giro d'Italia 2026 route | Giro d'Italia 2926 start list | Giro d'Italia 2026 contenders
Giro d'Italia 2026: Stage-by-stage table
Stage |
Day |
Start |
Finish |
Distance |
Terrain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
8 May |
Nessebar (Bulgaria) |
Burgas (Bulgaria) |
156km |
Flat |
2 |
9 May |
Burgas (Bulgaria) |
Veliko Tarnovo (Bulgaria) |
220km |
Hilly |
3 |
10 May |
Plovdiv (Bulgaria) |
Sofia (Bulgaria) |
174km |
Flat |
4 |
12 May |
Catanzaro |
Cosenza |
144km |
Flat |
5 |
13 May |
Praia a Mare |
Potenza |
204km |
Hilly |
6 |
14 May |
Paestum |
Napoli |
161km |
Flat |
7 |
15 May |
Formia |
Blockhaus |
246km |
Mountains |
8 |
16 May |
Chieti |
Fermo |
159km |
Medium mountains |
9 |
17 May |
Cervia |
Corno alle Scale |
184km |
Mountains |
10 |
19 May |
Viareggio |
Massa |
40.2km |
ITT |
11 |
20 May |
Porcari |
Chiavari |
178km |
Hilly |
12 |
21 May |
Imperia |
Novi Ligure |
177km |
Flat |
13 |
22 May |
Alessandria |
Verbania |
186km |
Hilly |
14 |
23 May |
Aosta |
Pila |
133km |
Mountains |
15 |
24 May |
Voghera |
Milan |
136km |
Flat |
16 |
26 May |
Bellinzona (Switzerland) |
Carì (Switzerland) |
113km |
Mountains |
17 |
27 May |
Cassano d'Adda |
Andalo |
100km |
Hilly |
18 |
28 May |
Fai della Paganella |
Pieve di Soligo |
166km |
Hilly |
19 |
29 May |
Feltre |
Alleghe |
151km |
Mountains |
20 |
30 May |
Gemona del Friuli |
Piancavallo |
199km |
Mountains |
21 |
31 May |
Rome |
Rome |
131km |
Flat |
Giro d'Italia 2026: The jerseys
The rider wearing the pink jersey (maglia rosa) leads the general classification. This is the rider who has accumulated the fastest time around the route so far, inclusive of time bonuses collected. On the final day, it is awarded to the overall general classification winner along with the Trofeo Senza Fine.
There are other jerseys up for grabs too. The purple (ciclamino) jersey is awarded to the rider who has accumulated the most points. More points are offered at the end of flatter, punchier stages than on mountain finishes, so this is a jersey for the sprinters. The blue (azzura) jersey goes to the rider who accumulates the most points on classified climbs, and the white (bianca) jersey is like the pink jersey but given to the best young rider under 26.
Read about the Giro d'Italia jerseys here.
More about the Giro d'Italia 2026
- Giro d'Italia 2026 full route details
- Giro d'Italia 2026 startlist
- Giro d'Italia 2026 GC contenders
- Giro d'Italia jerseys
- How much prize money does the winner of the Giro d'Italia get?
- How to watch the Giro d'Italia
Giro d'Italia: Past winners
Year |
Winner |
Country |
Team |
2025 |
Simon Yates |
Great Britain |
Visma-Lease a Bike |
2024 |
Tadej Pogačar |
Slovenia |
UAE Team Emirates |
2023 |
Primož Roglič |
Slovenia |
Jumbo-Visma |
2022 |
Jai Hindley |
Australia |
Bora-Hansgrohe |
2021 |
Egan Bernal |
Colombia |
Ineos Grenadiers |
2020 |
Tao Geoghegan Hart |
Great Britain |
Ineos Grenadiers |
2019 |
Richard Carapaz |
Ecuador |
Movistar |
2018 |
Chris Froome |
Great Britain |
Team Sky |
2017 |
Tom Dumoulin |
Netherlands |
Sunweb |
2016 |
Vincenzo Nibali |
Italy |
Astana |
2015 |
Alberto Contador |
Spain |
Tinkoff-Saxo |
2014 |
Nairo Quintana |
Colombia |
Movistar |
2013 |
Vincenzo Nibali |
Italy |
Astana |
