20 and 39 - The youngest and oldest riders at the 2026 Vuelta a España

Cycling
Saturday, 22 August 2026 at 12:37
Collage_StevenKruijswijkJakobOmrzel
The 2026 Vuelta a España begins this Saturday in Monaco. As the final Grand Tour of the season, it is often the one in which many young riders make their debut - their true introduction to three-week racing. Below, we look at the 10 youngest and oldest riders to start this year's Vuelta.

Bahrain - Victorious bring Omrzel as the youngest La Vuelta rider 

There is a very large density of young talent at the start of the Spanish race, with Jakob Omrzel being the very youngest at the start. The Bahrain - Victorious rider turned pro this year at a very tender age of 19, and will be introduced to the type of race the he may thrive in the future. As a former winner of the under-23 Giro d'Italia, he is not a rider to discount from the fight for the overall classification.
Omrzel is 20 years and 154 days old at the time of the Vuelta's foreign Gran Salida, but he is not the only 20-year old at the start. In fact there are four, as he is joined by Lotto-Intermarché's Jarno Widar; UAE Team Emirates - XRG's Pablo Torres and Alpecin-Premier Tech's Sente Sentjens.
Matthew Brennan, interestingly, is the fifth youngest at the start, meaning that all riders amongst this Top5 will either have a key support role for big leaders (such a Tadej Pogacar, Kaden Groves...) or will have their own opportunities to lead or hunt stage wins throughout the three weeks.
#RiderTeamAge
1 OMRZEL JakobTBV20y + 154d
2 WIDAR JarnoLOI20y + 282d
3 TORRES PabloUEX20y + 285d
4 SENTJENS SenteAPT20y + 354d
5 BRENNAN MatthewTVL21y + 16d
6 BELOKI MarkelEFE21y + 26d
7 PEACE OliverTPP21y + 142d
8 DE SCHUYTENEER SteffenLOI21y + 179d
9 BISIAUX LéoDCT21y + 189d
10 CHAMBERLAIN OscarDCT21y + 219d
Jakub Omrzel at the 2026 Trofeo Laigueglia
Jakob Omrzel is the youngest rider at the 2026 Vuelta a España 

Steven Kruijswijk closes out his career as the oldest at La Vuelta 

Steven Kruijswijk is the oldest rider at the start of the 2026 Vuelta a España. This comes as no surprise, but it will come as Kruijswijk's final race of a long and successful career. For the Dutchman, one of the most experienced faces in pro cycling, this is the ninth start at the Vuelta a España - and the 25th Grand Tour of his career.
A Grand Tour specialist, the Dutchman turned pro in 2010 and is now 39 years old. He is by far the oldest in the startlist, followed by Pinarello - Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team's David de la Cruz who is the only 37-year old at the start. Primoz Roglic and Mikel Landa are fourth and fifth in a ranking that includes several leaders, but also several riders who are saying goodbye to the peloton this year.
#RiderTeam
1 KRUIJSWIJK StevenTVL39y + 76d
2 DE LA CRUZ DavidPQT37y + 108d
3 MOLARD RudyGFC36y + 339d
4 ROGLIČ PrimožRBH36y + 297d
5 LANDA MikelSOQ36y + 252d
6 BILBAO PelloTBV36y + 178d
7 BENNETT GeorgeNSN36y + 137d
8 WARBASSE LarryTUD36y + 55d
9 HERRADA JesúsBBH36y + 27d
10 HOULE HugoAPT35y + 329d
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