Vuelta a Espana - the most important facts in brief
- Stage 3, Monday, 19 August
- Lousa - Castelo Branco, 191.2 kilometres, hilly
- Official start: 12:04
- Estimated arrival time: ~ 16:18 - 16:43
- TV broadcast: 14:30 - 18:00 Eurosport 1
- Live stream: Discovery Plus (subject to a charge)
- All stages of the Vuelta a Espana 2024 at a glance
- The favourites
- The start list
Vuelta 2024: Stage 3 - route, elevation profile and map
The last of three days of the opening stage in Portugal. The start of stage 3 is around 80 kilometres north of Ourem, the finish of stage 2, in Lousa, a small town near Coimbra. The route heads east towards the Serra da Estrela, the highest mountain range on the Portuguese mainland at up to 1993 metres, until kilometre 120. However, the professional cyclists do not have to climb that high on this day. The highest point of stage 3 is on the Alto de Teixeira (2nd category) at an altitude of 860 metres. At 3.2 per cent on average, the climb is not particularly steep, but it is 17.5 kilometres long. Around 40 kilometres later, the riders turn south in Covilha towards Castelo Branco, the finish.
The route there is characterised by shorter climbs and the Alto de Alpedrinha (4th category) - 6.4 kilometres at 3.4 percent on average. The route then flattens out before becoming slightly undulating again in the finale.
Sporting assessment of the 3rd stage
Although stage 3 is labelled as hilly, there is likely to be a sprint. The helpers and the legs of the fast men are too fresh at the start of the stage. A breakaway group only has a chance if it has enough manpower, which is rather unlikely at the start of the tour. The climbs in the middle of the stage, if ridden fast, could put some sprinters in trouble. However, there is still enough time to close any gaps.
Schedule, TV coverage & live stream of stage 3 of the Vuelta a Espana 2024
As on the previous day, the neutral start will take place at 11.50am. Around 15 minutes later, kilometre 0 will be reached. The finish is expected at 16:18 with an average speed of 45 km/h, 16:30 with 43 km/h and 16:43 with 41 km/h.
Eurosport will broadcast all stages of the Vuelta a Espana 2024. Stage 1 will be shown free-to-air on Eurosport 1 from 14:30.* Including post-event coverage, the broadcast will run until 18:00. A live stream on the internet is also available from the paid provider Discovery Plus.
* Transmission times are subject to change.
