The Volta a Catalunya will return to Espot 29 years later

The Cycling Tour to Catalonia begin to discover the route of its 106th edition, which will be held from March 22 to 28, 2028. Among the main news is the return of the ski resort Espotwhich will once again host a end of stage almost three decades after the race’s last visit.

High finishes will once again play a leading role in a test that has made the mountain one of its main distinctive features. In the next edition, two of these finals will be located in Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC) ski resorts: Espot and La Molina.

The return to Espot It will be one of the great novelties of the tour. The Volta has only arrived on two occasions: in 1979in a stage between Àger and Espot that the Swiss rider won Joseph Fuchsand in 1988when Arsenio Gonzalez won in a day starting from Bagà.

Located at the gates of Aigüestortes and Estany de Sant Maurici National ParkEspot offers one of the most emblematic mountain settings in the world. Catalan Pyrenees. The arrival will be located at 1,530 meters altitude and the ascension presents a average slope of 5.8% along a length of 9.8 kilometers.

The profile of the climb combines a more moderate beginning with a more demanding final part, where the ramps will reach 10%. A final stretch that will concentrate a good part of the hardness of the ascentny that, at the same time, will offer runners and spectators a high mountain setting with privileged views over the Pallars Sobirà.

The Molina It is one of the usual stages of the Volta. The race came for the first time in 2014in a stage that was awarded to the Catalan Joaquim Rodríguez. Since then, the station located in the municipality of Alp has hosted nine stage finishes and, in 2027, it will host its tenth.

The last arrival in La Molina took place in 2025with a narrow victory of Juan Ayusothen UAE rider, in an intense duel with Primož Roglič. The Slovenian cyclist made up for it the next day in Montserrat, where he achieved the stage victory and ended up taking the general classification of that edition.

La Molina has also been the scene of victories by big names in international cycling. Remco Evenepoelworld champion, won in 2023, while Ben O’Connor He did it in 2022. Before, the Colombian Miguel Ángel López (2019), Alejandro Valverde (2017 and 2018), Dan Martin (2016) and Tejay van Garderen (2015) also entered their name in the station’s honors list.

Unlike Espot, where the hardness is especially concentrated in the final part of the climb, La Molina presents the most demanding ramps at the beginning. The climb has a length of 10.8 kilometers, an average gradient of 4.5% and ramps that reach 14%. A fast climb, but with a demanding start, which can make a difference from the first kilometres.

Vallter, protagonist of the female Volta

The Women’s Cycling Tour of Catalonia will face its fourth edition in 2027, which will be held from June 18 to 20. The race will once again have the mountains as one of its main settings, with the premiere of Vallter on the test route.

La Molina has already been the protagonist in two editions of the women’s Volta, with the victories of the Dutch Marianne Vos in it 2024 and from the Catalan Paula Blasi in it 2026. In 2025, Coll de Pal took over as the grand final in high altitude, on a day that won the world champion Demi Vollering. In all three cases, victory in the mountains was decisive for the general classification, which the three runners would end up winning the next day.

2027 will be the turn of Vallter. A reference climb in the men’s Volta, which has been achieved nine times, and which the female runners will now face for the first time. Names of the size of Tadej Pogacar (2024), Giulio Ciccone (2023), Adam Yates (2019 and 2021) Tejay Van Garderen (2014), Nairo Quintana (2013) or Tony Rominger (1992)prevailed at the station.

The ascension, of a special category, culminates in the 2,135 meters altitude and has more than 11 kilometers of ascent from Setcases, with an average gradient of 7.6%. The entire port has vertical signage, in an ascent that promises to be one of the great points of the fourth edition of the Women’s Volta and a first-class setting for a new high finish.

Carles Ruiz, president of Ferrocarrils has highlighted: “The collaboration with the Volta a Catalunya allows us to link the mountain stations of Espot, La Molina and Vallter with one of the main cycling competitions on the international calendar. The presence of the race in these three locations in the Catalan Pyrenees will offer participants and fans the opportunity to enjoy stages of stages. The return of the Volta a Espot, the new arrivals in La Molina and the debut of Vallter in the women’s competition make up an especially significant edition from a sporting point of view. We hope that the fans experience a great cycling festival.”

Rubén Peris, General Director of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya wanted to highlight the support of Ferrocarrils with the UCI World Tour test “La Volta has been characterized in recent years by incorporating high-top finishes that provide great attraction for both the teams and the riders. In this sense, the support of Ferrocarrils has been key to being able to offer cyclists and fans a great show in some of the FGC ski resorts. We will again have their support and, for sure, in 1988, as well as the already well-known La Molina and Vallter, who will compete for the first time in the women’s event.”