From the 3rd to 8th of April 2023 the riders will tackle one of the most complicated stage-races in the World Tour calendar: Itzulia Basque Country. The six-day stage-race will see some of the world's best climbers fight in holy cycling land, the Basque Country.
This is a race that will feature several hilly and mountainous stages over the course of six days. This is frequently the final step for the riders who are preparing for the Ardennes classics, however simultaneously it is one of the most prestigious and hotly contested stage-races in the calendar. As classic, all stages feature hilly and mountainous profiles from start to finish.
Stage 1: Vitoria-Gasteiz - Labastida, 164.5 kilometers
Stage 1 will be a tough opening day for the Basque race, in traditional fashion as the day lacks any serious climb but is filled with small ascents and rolling roads. It's a treacherous day with the finale in Labastida but likely the best suited to the sprinters, with a slight uphill drag to the line.
Stage 2: Viana - Leitza, 194.9 kilometers
Stage 2 may end similarly, however the finale is very prone to attacks. It's a tricky day into Leitza with five categorized climbs. The final one ends with a 11.1-kilometer long climb at 3.1%, which summits with less than five kilometers to go. The run-up into Leitza will be dangerous and fast, downhill all the way into the line.
Stage 3: Errenteria - Villabona, 154.6 kilometers
Stage 3 will be a traditional Basque day, packed with short and steep climbs. Many of them uncategorized, but the second half of the stage has plenty of them in quick succession. The final 15 kilometers alone have four: 1.5Km at 9.7%; 1Km at 10%; 700 meters at 8.8% and the hilltop in which the stage ends with which is 1.1 kilometers at 9.4%.
Stage 4: Santurtzi - Santurtzi, 176.2 kilometers
Stage 4 has quite a lot of rolling roads into Saturtzi. The most decisive spot of the day will be the climb to La Asturiana. Contrary to the name it's a Basque ascent, it's 7.6 kilometers long at 6.3% but the first half is quite steeper. A descent will follow before an explosive finale.
Stage 5: Amorebieta - Amorebieta, 165.9 kilometers
In the roads of Amorebieta will be another stage suited to the puncheurs who are preparing for the Ardennes classics. It's another day full of short and explosive ascents, most of them uncategorized but quite meaningful for the day's fatigue build-up.
In the final 9 kilometers there are three hilltops: 900 meters at 9.1%; 600 meters at 9.6% and lastly 1Km at 7%, before another very fast and downhill finish into town.
Stage 6: Eibar - Eibar, 138.2 kilometers
The queen stage. Many of the days throughout the week can see dangerous attacks, but the climbers will really come into their own in the classic Eibar day. It won't end with a climb but has seven categorized ascents. Krabelin (4.4Km; 10%) will be present halfway through the stage, but the attacks should come later in the day.
It's in Izua (4.1Km; 9.1%) that the main moves are expected, it's the penultimate climb which summits with 27 kilometers to go. 5.3Km at 4.5% will be the details of the final climb of the race, before the run-up to Eibar after 3400 meters of climbing in 137 kilometers.
Estimated start and finish times for Itzulia Basque Country stages:
Stage 1: 14:20 - 18:30CET
Stage 2: 13:40 - 18:30CET
Stage 3: 14:40 - 18:30CET
Stage 4: 14:00 - 18:30CET
Stage 5: 14:20 - 18:30CET
Stage 6: 15:00 - 18:30CET
Read also
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 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- 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
- And we, what are we doing?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- And yet, it attracts people, even you. What’s more, it attracts the rival fanboys to fill cyberspace with endless pointless my hero is better than your hero blabla that’s all been heard before and only helps sell the site as an advertising platform. You know what the solution is but most can’t resist. No different than women who follow and discuss celebs through gossip magazines.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- he is doing 460 watts for 35 min to achieve 7 w/kg with VO2 at 96 , just unreal numbers.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just do it, and put up with the consequencesJumpyjohn08-11-2026
Loading
⚠️ Empezamos a desvelar las etapas de la #Itzulia2023 Cada 15 minutos una etapa ⏳ 📢 #Itzulia2023 -ko etapak aurkeztuko ditugu ‼️ 15 minuturo etapa bat 🧐
Write a comment