Giro d’Italia 2026
MAY 8-31

The Giro d’Italia, one of cycling’s most prestigious
Grand Tours, was first held in 1909, starting in Milan
and inspired by the success of the Tour de France.
The 2026 edition begins on the historic Black Sea
coast in Nessebar, Bulgaria – the 16th start on
foreign soil – before tackling the arduous
Dolomites and concluding
in the Eternal City,
Rome


Title contenders

Triple threat
Jonas Vingegaard
Visma-Lease a Bike
Set for maiden tilt at Giro title after
Grand Tour crowns at Tour de France
and Vuelta a España


Breakthrough star
Giulio
Pellizzari
Red Bull-
Bora-Hansgrohe
Emerging Italian talent
ambitious to improve on
sixth-place finish in 2025.
With aggressive racing style
and natural climbing ability,
Pellizzari is tipped to
excel during daunting
mountain stages

O Gran Camiño champion
Adam
Yates
UAE Team Emirates
British rider
aiming for maiden
Grand Tour victory.
Leads team, alongside
efficient Australian
Jay Vine, after
João Almeida
ruled out
with
illness


Elite Club
Vingegaard, after claiming major
race victories in both Paris-Nice and
Volta a Catalunya this year, is aiming to
become only eighth rider in history to win
all three of cycling’s Grand Tours

Giro 	Tour de France 	La Vuelta
Titles	Eddy Merckx BEL
11 	1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974
	Bernard Hinault FRA
10 	1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1985
	Jacques Anquetil FRA
08 	1957 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964
	Alberto Contador ESP
07 	2007 2008 2009 2012 2014 2015
	Chris Froome GBR
07 	2011 2013 2015 2016 2017 2018
	Felice Gimondi ITA
05 	1965 1967 1968 1969 1976
	Vincenzo Nibali ITA
04 	2010 2013 2014 2016
	Jonas Vingegaard DEN
03 	2022 2023 2025


RACE LEGENDS: Only three riders to have conquered Giro five times,
while Italian Mario Cipollini holds record for most stage wins (42)

Alfredo
Binda ITA
1925, 27, 28,
29, 33

Fausto
Coppi ITA
1940, 47, 49,
52, 53

Eddy
Merckx BEL
1968, 70, 72,
73, 74


Giro d’Italia editions: 108
Italy
44 riders
69
Rest of the world
29 riders
39

Belgium (7 wins), France (6), Spain (4), Great Britain, Switzerland, Russia (3),
Colombia, Slovenia, Luxembourg (2), Sweden, Ireland, United States,
Canada, Netherlands, Ecuador, Australia (1)


Maglia Rosa – race leader’s pink jersey – introduced in 1931
by Armando Cougnet, sports journalist at La Gazzetta dello
Sport, to help spectators identify race leader. It has since
been worn by total of 283 different riders

HIGHEST NUMBER OF DAYS IN MAGLIA ROSA
Eddy Merckx (1968-70, 1972-74)
77
Alfredo Binda (1925, 1927-29, 1931, 1933)
60
Francesco Moser (1976-77, 1979-82, 1984-85)
57
Gino Bartali (1936-37, 1939, 1946-47)
50


Trofeo
Senza
Fine
‘The Trophy
with No End’
first awarded
in 1999


Overall
leader: Pink
leader: Pink
Awarded to Giro
winner. Worn by race
leader at start of each
stage – calculated by
totalling each day’s
finishing
time

King of the
Mountains: Blue
Held by rider
who proves to be
best climber, with
more severe climbs
offering most
points

Best
young rider:
White
Awarded to highest-
placed rider aged
under 25. Prize
returned in 2007
after 12-year
hiatus

Points
leader: Purple
Fastest sprinters
compete for points
at end of each stage –
points adjusted by
terrain, flat stages
awarding most
points


ROUTE 2026
Total race
distance
3,468.0km
2026 edition features
breathtaking landscapes
and legendary climbs,
boasting over 48,000m of total
elevation gain. Race peaks at
Stage 19 – the Cima Coppi –
on fearsome Passo Giau


Stage 1
Start
Finish
Start / finish
Rest day
Individual time-trial
Mountain stage
Hill stage
Flat stage

STAGE BREAKDOWN
Stage 	Date	km
1	May 8	147
2	9	221
3	10	175
4	12	138
5	13	203
6	14	142
7	15	244
8	16	156
9	17	184
10	19	42
11	20	195
12	21	175
13	22	189
14	23	133
15	24	157
16	26	113
17	27	202
18	28	171
19	29	151	
20	30	200
21	31	131


STAGE 19: Profile

Start:
Feltre 336m

Passo Duran 1601m
Forcella Staulanza 1766m
Passo Giau 2233m
Passo Falzarego 2105m
Finish: Alleghe 1456m

km	69.2	115.7	177.5	205


1 START: May 8, Nessebar
BULGARIA
Burgas
2
Veliko Tarnovo
Plovdiv
3
Sofia
Catanzaro
4
Cosenza
Prada
a Mare
5
Potenza
Paestum
6
Napoli
Formia
7
Blockhaus
Chieti
8
Fermo
I T A L Y
Cervia
9
Corno alle Scale 
10
Viareggio
Massa
Porcari
11
Chiavari
Imperia
12
Novi Ligure
Alessandria
13
Verbania
Aosta
14
Pila
Voghera
15
Milan
Bellinzona
16
Cari
Cassano d’Adda
17
Andalo
Fai della Paganella
18
Pieve di Soligo
Feltre
Alleghe
19
Gemona del Friuli
20
Piancavallo
21 FINISH: May 31, Rome


Sources: Giro d’Italia, Gracenote Pictures: AP, Getty Images, Wikimedia Commons, Twitter © GRAPHIC NEWS