Barcelona to host Grand Depart of the 2026 Tour de France - 'A dream pursued for years'
By Matt Jones
Published 25/02/2025 at 21:34 GMT
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The 2026 Tour de France will take riders past iconic landmarks such as the Sagrada Familia and Las Ramblas. Barcelona is hosting the Grand Depart, and the route for the opening three stages has been revealed. The 1992 Olympic Stadium will provide the finishing line for the opening two days of racing. City mayor Jaume Collboni says it is a "dream" that the event is coming to Barcelona.
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Barcelona mayor Jaume Collboni said it is a "dream" for the region to host the opening three days of racing of the 2026 Tour de France.
The Spanish city, announced as the venue for the Grand Depart, has unveiled the route for two of the stages.
Iconic landmarks such as the Sagrada Familia, as well as the famous market street Las Ramblas, will provide a sensational backdrop for the event, with the 21-stage race to be shown exclusively live on TNT Sports and discovery+ in the UK and Ireland.
Collboni thinks it will showcase Catalonia at its absolute best, saying: "Today, we fulfil a dream. The dream of seeing the Grand Depart of the Tour de France become a reality. A dream that Barcelona has pursued for years."
The announcement is a move away from this year's iteration, when racing will take place solely in France for the first time since 2020.
In previous editions, Copenhagen, Brussels and Leeds have hosted the Grand Depart.
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But this is not the first time the Tour has headed to Spain, with the event kicking off in Bilbao in 2023.
None of those cities can boast an Olympic stadium though, and that is where Stage 1 of the 2026 Tour will reach its climax.
A 19.7km team time trial will pass the Olympic port and the Sagrada Familia, before riders climb up to the venue which hosted the Games in 1992.
Race director Christian Prudhomme admitted he was excited to "see the fervour of the fans as the race climbs the slopes of Montjuic" on which the stadium - currently the temporary home of FC Barcelona - resides.
The arena will also be used for the end of Stage 2, which is a 178km ride starting from Tarragona.
Stage 3, starting in Granollers, heads off towards France. The route for the remaining 18 stages will be revealed in October.
Stream the 2025 cycling season, including the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes, live on discovery+
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