Profiles & Route Giro D'Italia Donne 2026 - Colle delle Finestre headlines route with 4 mountain stages
Cycling
The 2026 Giro d'Italia Donne will be taking place from the 30th of May to the 7th of June and it is one of the most important races in the women's calendar. It will feature nine stages and amongst them is a mountain time trial in Nevegal, a brutal stage through the Dolomites and even an ascent to the Colle delle Finestre.
The nine-day race hence features four mountain stages (one of them an individual time trial), three stages that are purely for the bunch sprinters and two stages that could either end in a sprint finish (bunch or reduced peloton) or potentially with a breakaway taking the triumph.
Stage 1: Cesenatico, Ravenna
Stage 1: Cesenatico, Ravenna, 139 kilometers
The race starts off in Cesenatico and the first day of racing takes the riders into Ravenna, where a bunch sprint is expected at the end of the day to attribute the first pink jersey to a sprinter.
Stage 2: Roncade H-Farm - Caorle
Stage 2: Roncade H-Farm - Caorle, 146 kilometers
The second stage of the race is also going to have a sprint finish with certainty in Caorle, however the riders do have to pay attention to the short but brutally steep Muro di Ca del Poggio which is inserted in the route and could split the peloton to bits.
Stage 3: Bibione - Buja
Stage 3: Bibione - Buja, 154 kilometers
Stage 3 into Buja from Bibione is 154 kilometers long and is a day that the sprinters should take, but there is a small obstacle less than 20 kilometers from the finish line where a few fast women may struggle.
Stage 4 (ITT): Belluno - Nevegal
Stage 4 (ITT): Belluno - Nevegal, 12.7 kilometers
The battle for the overall classification starts on stage 4 with a time trial into Nevegal. This is a tricky one with the first 5 kilometers either slightly downhill or uphill, but only the final 7 are truly in the climb. But this is a brutal one, featuring over 4 kilometers at 10%, whilst it doesn't get too easy either towards the summit.
Stage 5: Longarone - Santo Stefano di Cadore
Stage 5: Longarone - Santo Stefano di Cadore, 138 kilometers
The queen stage? It is, potentially, there is an immense amount of climbing in the Dolomites starting off with a very long run-up and the Passo Tre Croci, but also the brutal Passo di Sant'Antonio, a climb the Giro hasn't ridden through in a long time. The peloton will still take on two smaller climbs in Costalissoio where further attacks can take place beefore the finiale in Santo Stefano di Cadore.
Stage 6: Ala - Brescello
Stage 6: Ala - Brescello, 155 kilometers
The riders return to the flatlands for another bunch sprint stage, starting in Ala and finishing in Brescello.
Stage 7: Sorbolo Mezzani - Salice Terme
Stage 7: Sorbolo Mezzani - Salice Terme, 165 kilometers
Stage 7 is the only day where we truly don't know what the outcome should be in this Giro Donne. Most of the stage is pan-flat, benefiting the sprinters, and there will only be two efforts close to the finish in Salice Terme. The climbs won't be too hard but should drop a few riders. The question is if we'll still have a sprint to the line between all the sprinters or if the GC riders or some attacks can truly split the race permanently.
Stage 8: Rivoli - Sestrière
Stage 8: Rivoli - Sestrière, 101 kilometers
The riders will be heading to the western Alps and take on none other than the Colle delle Finestre, one of the toughest and most iconic climbs in pro cycling. Most likely, this will be the most decisive day of the race, with the 19-kilometer climb set to take well over an hour even for the top climbers. Even then, the finale is only at the top of Sestrière, a few kilometers ahead and at altitude.
Stage 9: Saluzzo - Saluzzo
Stage 9: Saluzzo - Saluzzo, 143 kilometers
The final stage of the race starts and finishes in Saluzzo, featuring three categorized climbs where the action can explode once again. The climb to Montoso mainly is a brute, and the fight for the pink jersey may open up one final time. It's a day that's open to several scenarios.
Elisa Longo Borghini won the Giro Donne in 2025. Can she repeat her achievement? @ProShots
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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.
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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)...
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- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- The UCI do have their favorites.
Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- People see what they want to. I am actually the opposite of your accusation, probably more of a rebel than most of you who don’t get the big picture. The difference is, I don’t go moaning publicly about the consequences of my transgressions, I understand the need for rules and I take my OWN responsibility when deciding to ignore or break them or doing so involuntarily. I will also not hesitate to state my case or argue vehemently when relevant, sometimes it works, sometimes it makes things worse but that’s the price to pay for principles and having character.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- That may be but that was unknown to others and nothing says that’s the whole truth. Again, don’t try to misinterpret, it is a call and technically it is correct. Besides, even if there is a valid reason, that does not disqualify the ruling or punishment as far as the rules have been developed. I don’t think they’re as far as in football where for handball there is a distinction (in some ways and specific cases) between intentional or not. And football can be just as harsh and people live with it, eg the offside rule, also judged to within tiny fractions but often wrong or ignored. It’s the nature of every collective organisation and sometimes I wonder if our rebellion against it isn’t seated in the feelings we carry from the injustices we’ve felt personally, like being flashed driving 1km/h too fast when we are explained limits are just a security measure but we are absolutely certain not to have endangered anyone with our transgression. The problem is, nobody has better solutions and no 2 people have the same interpretation of where a limit should be.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Because for you deviated implies the other rider MUST have been made to fall and fail to finish ??? I don’t know if you ride a bike but next time someone carves you up or drives dangerously close, just hold back from those feelings of changing something, reporting or filming or even complaining. Everyone will just say, hey you’re still here undamaged, doesn’t seem like anyone did anything.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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