After a guest appearance in the Netherlands at the start, Primoz Roglic won the first stage of the 77th Vuelta on Spanish soil.
Roglic takes over the red jersey
After 152.5 kilometres from Victoria to Laguardia, the professional cyclist from Slovenia took a commanding lead ahead of former world champion Mads Pedersen from Denmark and Spaniard Enric Mas. Roglic also took the lead in the overall standings. The 32-year-old had won the stage race in each of the last three years.
The fifth stage of the Tour of Spain also leads through the Basque Country on Wednesday. On the 187.2 kilometres from Irun to Bilbao, the Alto del Vivero must be conquered twice in the final stage.
The 4.6 kilometre climb is in the second category and has an average gradient of eight per cent. The finale is likely to be too difficult for the sprinters.
Elevation profile: This was stage 4 of the Vuelta 2022 from Vitoria-Gasteiz to Laguardia
The stages of the Vuelta in detail
Unlike in the Tour de France, the leader's jersey in the Vuelta is not yellow, but red. We have summarised which other leader's jerseys and special classifications there are in the Tour of Spain in our text on the rules.
Numerous top cycling stars will be at the start of the 2022 Vuelta. TOUR has compiled an overview of the line-ups of the 23 teams.
Tour of Spain for women
In addition to the men's race, there will also be another Vuelta for women in 2022, the Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta. It will take place from 7 to 11 September with a total of five stages.
The first stage starts in Marina de Cudeyo in Cantabria, with the final section finishing four days later in the Spanish capital Madrid.
History of the Vuelta
The men's Vuelta a Espana is back after the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France the third of the three major national tours (Grand Tours), which will be held in 2022. The Tour of Spain was held for the first time in 1935 and is therefore younger than its Italian and French counterparts.
Until the 1990s, the Vuelta traditionally took place in spring. The date was then moved to August or September. There was one exception in 2020, when the Vuelta was moved to October and November due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The record winner is the Spaniard Roberto Heras with four titles. Three Germans have won the race so far: Rudi Altig (1962), Rolf Wolfshohl (1965) and Jan Ullrich (1999).
