Tour de France 2026 Grand Départ presented in Barcelona

Allez le peloton, allez le tour! The Tour de France is coming to Barcelona, as the Catalan capital will host the Grand Départ in 2026.

In fact, the most famous cycling event in the world will contest the first three stages of the race in Catalonia. 

Catalonia has hosted stages of the Tour de France before, but never the Grand Départ.

The first stage of the grand tour will be a 19.7km team time trial beginning in Parc del Fòrum and ending in the Olympic Stadium in Montjuïc. 

The second stage, lasting 178km, will begin in Tarragona and move north up the coast through Sitges before moving up some peaks in Begues, before eventually finishing with three laps of Montjuïc. 

The third stage of the race will begin in Catalonia again, starting from Granollers, but it has not yet been revealed what route the stage will take.  

The Grand Départ of the race was presented on Tuesday evening in Llotja de Mar in Barcelona. Mayor Jaume Collboni, president Salvador Illa, and Tour de France general director Christian Prudhomme were some of the names to speak at the ceremony. 

Collboni hailed that the city of Barcelona is a true world capital of sport, becoming the first city to host all of a FIFA World Cup, an Olympic Games, an America's Cup, and a Grand Départ of a Tour de France. 

The last time the race came here was in 2009, with two stages from Girona to Barcelona, then Barcelona to Andorra. 

Before that, two stages were held in 1965, and three in 1957. 

Barcelona also provided the backdrop for the beginning of the 2023 Vuelta a España, with many of the world's most famous cyclists kicking off their tour on the beach of the Catalan capital. 

Girona, a "Mecca" for cyclists

Due to its proximity to the Pyrenees mountains and wide range of interesting terrain and roads to challenge oneself on, Girona has become a hugely popular destination for cyclists to visit or even for professionals to base themselves in. 

According to former professional mountain biker Dave Walsh, the city is "the perfect storm" for cycling. "It's got good roads, good climate, good range of terrains, and different places to cycle which is really good for training."