The 2026 Tour de Pologne will begin this upcoming week. Despite being a very busy period of the season, UAE Team Emirates - XRG is showing up at the post-Tour de France World Tour stage-race with a star-studded lineup and several riders to contend for the overall win.
The race features three flat stages to begin with and then a few days in the hills where the overall classification will be decided. The race starts on the 3rd of August and finishes on the 9th in Krakow with a time trial starting and finishing in the Wieliczka Salt Mine, 12 kilometers in length.
After winning the Tour de France, UAE has plenty riders recovering into the coming events; whilst several are also specifically preparing for the Vuelta a España. With the Vuelta a Burgos also colliding in the calendar, it is no easy task to fit all the pieces of the puzzle together, but UAE has assembled a very strong lineup to tackle the Polish race.
João Almeida returns to racing. The Portuguese rider was hampered by an unknown virus in the spring which made it impossible for him to reach his best level from March onwards, and ultimately saw him removed from the lineup for the Giro d'Italia. He returned to competition at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, but was unable to be an important part of Isaac del Toro's support crew. Ever since, Almeida has been recovering and looks to regain his best form ahead of La Vuelta where he was second last year.
Jhonatan Narváez should be co-leading the team next to him, or leading by himself if Almeida is not at his best form. The Ecuadorian has recently won three stages at the Giro d'Italia and then backed that up with another triumph at the Tour de Suisse. After a recovery block, he now begins a string of races that fit his abilities perfectly.
Jan Christen and Benoît Cosnefroy join the duo as further classics specialists, well suited to the short and steep climbs, of which the riders will find aplenty. Mikkel Bjerg, Vegard Stake Laengen and Rune Herregodts complete the lineup - with the latter having confirmed earlier this week that he would be departing the team at the end of the season.
After a complicated year, João Almeida looks to return to the forefront at the Tour de Pologne
UAE Team Emirates - XRG for Tour de Pologne 2026
| Riders |
| João Almeida |
| Mikkel Bjerg |
| Jan Christen |
| Benoît Cosnefroy |
| Rune Herregodts |
| Vegard Stake Laengen |
| Jhonatan Narváez |
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 1visitors 1
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- The conditions there were absolutely heavenly. No wonder that Vanthourenhout was literally sucked into the ground. I think Mason and Wyseure are very similar types of riders. We've seen that when Vanthourenhout has been in a similar position to where Mason was, and Wyseure has had the legs, he's been able to power his way back. But that's not quite possible when Mason is putting out more power in front.
Rafionain-Glas11-11-2026 - What a win! It's been been so long in the waiting but I'm so glad for Cameron that he's finally got that victory. Sad to see Brand crash out like that. It didn't look too bad initially but there was clearly something very wrong. It could be like van Aert's last yearRafionain-Glas11-11-2026
- since you called pidcock pogi's BIG RIVAL in another article a few days ago ... i guess adding ciccone to the mix makes him almost unbeatable, no?Ketterechts11-11-2026
- 🤣🤣🤣what a headlineabstractengineer11-11-2026
- When you have four or five guys who are defined leaders of teams that are winning races or at least placing highly in big races, a lot of guys who are racing will not be seen as assets to those teams. If they can't be part of the program then they are let go. I remember back if you won a single stage of the Tour and maybe had a good classic result you would have a cemented place on a team. That is not the case now in the era we live in because the top guys are so good and their goals are so defined. It's bad in a way for them but good for us as fans.awp11-11-2026
- Lots of people seem fed up of Pogi's phenomenal dominance, but I've been drawn into watching professional cycling again (after the Armstrong doping era, that's when I stopped) because of it. I don't think I'd be as interested if it wasn't for Pogi. People call it boring, it’s the exact opposite for me, I will never ever tire of watching absolute greatness in action. He is the greatest athlete this planet has ever produced. Ad acta!!!PogiSloFans11-11-2026
- dfsdfsdfsdfwajohe447911-11-2026
- I have no sympathy for Ayuso or the situations he gets himself into. He was a traitor in the UAE team, he hated Pogi and never wanted to work for him. He always had excuses why he couldn't perform. No riders in the team liked his character and did not approve the kind of person he was on a deep, moral, or personal level. I just don't care about him. Ad acta.PogiSloFans11-11-2026
- Great response! I love the article also. Interesting to see which "Legends" will be covered. There are a few out there :-)
DareDevil11-11-2026 - This is one of the reasons why Ineos is failing, G can comment on his pod but why has he not attracted talent from the peloton to Ineos. He has lot of inside track. Also ratcliffe handling of Man United is also disastrous.abstractengineer11-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment