ANALYSIS - The 3 climbs that will decide the Giro d’Italia 2026 general classification in the final week
Cycling
The 2026 Giro d’Italia enters its decisive phase from Tuesday. After two weeks of racing, the battle for the maglia rosa moves onto the most demanding terrain with a final week built for the mountains and big gaps. Although Jonas Vingegaard retains a significant lead on GC, the three remaining high-mountain stages promise an open fight to the end.
It’s not only the maglia rosa at stake. One of the most compelling contests is for the podium, where Afonso Eulálio, Felix Gall, Thymen Arensman, Jai Hindley, Giulio Pellizzari, and Michael Storer are chasing the final two spots in the Top 3.
The Top 10 fight also features big names, including Egan Bernal, 12th and aiming to keep climbing, alongside Ben O'Connor, Derek Gee, Davide Piganzoli, Mathys Rondel, and others.
The organisers have saved several of the race’s toughest and most iconic arenas for the closing days. Carì, Alleghe, and Piancavallo stand out as the points likely to decide the overall winner of this edition.
Carì opens the final week
The first major appointment arrives on Tuesday, May 26th, with stage 16 from Bellinzona to Carì. It’s a short day, barely 113 kilometres, but with heavy accumulated effort and close to 3,000 metres of elevation gain.
The route includes two laps of a circuit featuring the climbs to Torre and Leontica, two punchy ascents that will sap legs before the decisive finale. Leontica, in particular, has very demanding sections with gradients reaching 14%.
The stage finishes on the climb to Carì, a first-category ascent of 11,7 kilometres at 7,9% average. Beyond its steady hardness, it features ramps up to 13%, ideal terrain for the favourites to attack and start carving out serious differences on GC.
Stage 16: Bellinzona - Cari, 113 kilometres
Passo Giau, judge of the mountains
The queen stage arrives on Friday, May 29th, over 151 kilometres from Feltre to Alleghe, finishing at Piani di Pezzè. It will be one of the hardest days of the Giro, with more than 5,000 metres of elevation gain and six categorised climbs.
The race will toughen early with the sequence of Passo Duran, Coi, and Forcella Staulanza. The Coi is especially fearsome, a short but extremely explosive ascent, averaging close to 10% with ramps up to 19%.
However, the day’s headline act is the legendary Passo Giau, the Cima Coppi of this edition. Its 9,9 kilometres at 9,3% and maximum gradients of 14% make it one of the Giro’s decisive moments. The summit at 2,233 metres adds altitude fatigue deep in week three.
After Passo Falzarego and a long descent, the day ends in Alleghe with a final five-kilometre climb at 9,6%, where significant gaps could still open among the maglia rosa contenders.
Stage 19: Feltre - Alleghe (Piani di Pezzè), 151 kilometres
Piancavallo to crown the champion
The last major chance to reshape the GC comes on Saturday, May 30th, in stage 20 from Gemona del Friuli to Piancavallo.
It’s a long day of 200 kilometres, with a relatively calm start before the decisive final 70 kilometres. There comes the first ascent to Piancavallo, a 14,5-kilometre climb at 7,8% with ramps up to 14% that can blow the race apart.
Stage 20: Gemona del Friuli - Piancavallo, 199 kilometres
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After the summit, the riders face a descent and a favourable section before returning to the final ascent on the same side. That second climb to Piancavallo is the Giro’s last big test and the setting where the winner will be virtually decided before the finale in Rome.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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