WORLD-CLASS CLIMBERS TO TAKE CENTRE STAGE AT LA VUELTA FEMENINA 26 BY CARREFOUR.ES

April 30 ^th 2026 - 17:30 [GMT + 2]

Key points:

• The appeal of the Alto de l’Angliru has attracted a vast field of star climbers to La Vuelta Femenina 26 by Carrefour.es, spearheaded by two Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift winners such as Pauline Ferrand-Prévot and Kasia Niewiadoma Phinney, as well as Anna van der Breggen, third in the Spanish Grand Tour in 2025.
• A familiar name in Spanish roads, Marianne Vos will try to expand her already large collection of stage wins in the many punchy finishes of the opening stages, rivaling former world champion Lotte Kopecky and her teammate Mischa Bredewold, among many other fast and powerful riders.
• The Spanish contingent will be led by the UAE Team ADQ duo formed by veteran Mavi García and up-and-coming talent Paula Blasi, with Movistar Team and Laboral Kutxa entering well-rounded squads and aiming to play a prominent role.

La Vuelta Femenina 26 by Carrefour.es is set to be the toughest edition yet of the Spanish grand tour. From May 3 to 9, the women’s peloton will have to deal with more than 14,500 metres of elevation gain. The lumpy nature of the terrain in northwest Spain, where all seven stages will be held, will culminate in two demanding, steep uphill finishes in Les Praeres and the gruelling Alto de L’Angliru. The 18 participating teams have duly adapted their line-ups to the profile of the course, fielding some of their best climbers to guarantee an intense, exhilarating fight for La Roja - the red jersey awarded to the best rider in the overall standings of the race.

Reigning Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift champion Pauline Ferrand-Prévot is the main favourite for the victory. After an underwhelming debut last year, in which she had to quit the race after four stages due to physical issues, the French rider is returning to Spain with her climbing prowess as her main asset to contend for a top result: “I want to give my best in my current shape. I feel I’m lacking some punch, but when it comes to long climbs I am at a similar level compared with last year.” Backing her in the Visma-Lease a Bike outfit will be the winner of the first Tour de l’Avenir, Marion Bunel, who delivered solid performances just last week in the Ardennes classics.

Poland’s Kasia Niewiadoma Phinney was one of the main stars at La Flèche Wallonne (4th) and Liège-Bastogne-Liège (3rd), proving once again her exceptional uphill ability and making good use of the experience she has gained over more than a decade in the pro peloton. The Canyon//SRAM leader is targeting the final podium, and will have two excellent climbers by her side in Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig and Neve Bradbury. Equally strong is the line-up entered by FDJ United-Suez, with two riders who know what success in La Vuelta Femenina feels like: Juliette Berthet (née Labous; top-7 overall in all three editions of the race held on its current format) and Évita Muzic (also top-10 in all three women’s Vueltas, on top of winning a stage atop Laguna Negra de Vinuesa in 2024).

The field of climbers challenging for the overall win is even deeper, with four more riders present at last year’s final top-10: Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly), Monica Trinca Colonel (Liv-AlUla-Jayco), Yara Kastelijn (Fenix-Premier Tech) and best young rider of the edition Nienke Vinke (Team SD Worx - Protime). The latter is sharing leadership with a legend in women’s cycling, Anna Van der Breggen, who already won a stage in La Vuelta Femenina 25 by Carrefour.es and proved in the Ardennes classics that she is in strong form. Alongside them are two riders capable of winning the punchy opening stages in Galicia, all of them shaped for their punchy profile as riders: multi-world champion on the road and on the track Lotte Kopecky, and former European road champion Mischa Bredewold.

The likes of Kopecky and Bredewold find a powerful rival in Marianne Vos. The Team Visma-Lease a Bike emblem shares with Demi Vollering the record of most stage wins in this race with 6, all of them conquered in bunch sprints of all types - flat or uphill, mass or reduced. Fast women like the Liv-AlUla-Jayco power duo formed by Italy’s Letizia Paternoster and Australia’s Ruby Roseman-Gannon will also have their say, and so will Paris-Roubaix - Hauts de France winner Franziska Koch (FDJ United-Suez) or Olympic champion Kristen Faulkner (EF Education-Oatly), who has a valuable teammate who can also seize her own opportunities in Noemi Rüegg

Last but not least comes the local contingent. Spanish cycling has found a new, exciting hope in UAE Team ADQ’s Paula Blasi, surprising victor in the Amstel Gold Race who later confirmed her talent in Flèche (3rd) and Liège (5th) to round out an excellent debut in the Ardennes classics. By her side will be her mentor Mavi García, a role model for all Spanish riders throughout a career that she intends to cap off with a strong overall challenge in La Vuelta Femenina 26 by Carrefour.es. Alongside them will be other Spanish elite riders like AG Insurance’s Mireia Benito or Vini Fantini’s Marina Garau, as well as the two main teams from the country: Movistar Team, led by Germany’s Liane Lippert, and Fundación Euskadi’s Laboral Kutxa, with sprinter Catalina Soto as their main chance for a first stage win in this race, and Usoa Ostolaza as a contender for the general classification.

18 teams. The main riders:

Australia

Liv-AlUla-Jayco : Monica Trinca Colonel, Letizia Paternoster (ITA), Ruby Roseman-Gannon (AUS) 

Belgium

AG Insurance - Soudal Team : Ashleigh Moolman (SAF), Mireia Benito (ESP), Urska Zigart (SLO)

Fenix-Premier Tech : Yara Kastelijn, Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (NED)Lotto Intermarché Ladies : Linda Riedmann (GER), Anna van Wersch (NED) 

France

FDJ United - Suez : Juliette Berthet (née Labous), Evita Muzic (FRA), Franziska Koch (GER)

Mayenne Monbana My Pie : Karolina Perekitko (POL), Alice Coutinho (FRA) 

Germany

Canyon//SRAM ZondaCrypto : Katarzyna Niewiadoma-Phinney (POL), Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (DEN), Neve Bradbury (AUS)

Lidl - Trek : Ricarda Bauernfeind (GER), Riejanne Markus (NED), Gaia Realini (ITA) 

Italy

Vini Fantini - Bepink : Marina Garau (ESP), Andrea Casagranda (ITA) 

Netherlands

Team Picnic PostNL : Eleonora Ciabocco (ITA), Juliana Londoño (COL)

Team SD Worx - Protime : Lotte Kopecky (BEL), Anna Van der Breggen, Nienke Vinke, Mischa Bredewold (NED)

Team Visma | Lease a Bike : Pauline Ferrand-Prévot, Marion Bunel (FRA), Marianne Vos (NED), Imogen Wolff (GBR) 

Norway

Uno-X Mobility : Katrine Aalerud, Sigrid Haugset (NOR), Laura Tomasi (ITA) 

Spain

Laboral Kutxa - Fundación Euskadi : Usoa Ostolaza (ESP), Arianna Fidanza (ITA), Catalina Soto (CHI)

Movistar Team : Liane Lippert (GER), Arlenis Sierra (CUB), Sara Martín (ESP) 

United Arab Emirates

UAE Team ADQ : Paula Blasi, Mavi García (ESP), Maëva Squiban (FRA), Karlijn Swinkels (NED) 

United States of America

EF Education - Oatly : Kristen Faulkner (USA), Cédrine Kerbaol (FRA), Noemi Rüegg (SWI)

Human Powered Health : Barbara Malcotti (ITA), Marta Jaskulska (POL)