The 22 participating teams: Team Sky, Trek-Segafredo, FDJ, Movistar Team, IAM Cycling, Bora-Argon 18, Astana Pro Team, Cannondale Drapac Team, Team Katusha, Tinkoff, BMC Racing Team, Lampre-Merida, AG2R La Mondiale, Team Dimension Data, Lotto Soudal, Team Lotto NL-Jumbo, Team Giant-Alpecin, Direct Energie, Etixx Quick-Step, Cofidis Solutions Credits, Orica-BikeExchange and Caja Rural-Seguros RGA will take to the stage next Thursday, the 18th of August, to present the 198 riders that will be present at the 2016 Vuelta starting-line. Besides the accredited personnel, the general public will also be welcome, though access to the area will be strictly by foot.
The first stage, a team time trial, will start on the 20th of August at 6:26pm, from the Laias Health Resort, in the heart of the Thermal Province of Ourense. The 22 teams will start at 4-minute intervals and will cover a distance of 27.8km until they reach the Castrelo do Miño Nautical Park where the finish-line is located. The last group is expected to cross it around 8:18pm.
Ready, set…
From that moment, we commence a full week of racing in Galicia, during which we will cross all four Galician provinces. We will return to the spectacular setting of the Mirador de Ézaro and we will visit other unprecedented locations such as San Andrés de Teixido, a setting that is open to the world in which the Cantabrian and Atlantic seas combine their breathtaking beauty. We repeat the climbs of the Camperona, Naranco, the Lakes of Covadonga and Peña Cabarga. Four important days that will be key for the general classification of this edition of the Vuelta. Our return to Bilbao and the unprecedented climb up the Col de l’Aubisque are two arrivals that we are particularly looking forward to. The first because, just maybe, the Basque Country has a different type of fan base than the other locations and, the second because taking the race to places it has never been is always an incentive.
Aragon will serve to link the Pyrenees with the Autonomous Community of Valencia, that will have a particularly prominent role this year. There will be two stages in Castellón, including one that will end at Mas de la Costa that will pleasantly surprise those who have never been there. The time trial held on the second-last day at Aitana, which once again forms part of the Vuelta, will complete a final high-pressure week that will decide the final winner. Ten high-altitude finales that will make up one more edition, number 71, and a dream for those of us who give our all to this race.
