"The target years are 2028 and 2029" - Croatia wants to become the newest country to host a Grand Tour start

Unlike the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España, it is not yet known where the 2026 Giro d'Italia will start. There have been heavy rumours that Sofia in Bulgaria could be a surprise host for the Grande Partenza, whilst internally the city of Trieste in the northeast edge of the nation also has good chances. However what we can be sure of is that in the next few years the Corsa Rosa may be starting in Croatia for the first time, a country that has never had the start of a Grand Tour on its roads.

This would continue the trend of recent nations hosting the start of the first Grand Tour of the season, which had Budapest host its 2022 start and most recently the Albanian capital of Tirana as a very unusual Grande Partenza this spring. However, for these countries it is a once-in-a-generation opportunity. In recent years Spain and Scotland will host the start of the Tour de France whilst Luxembourg, Germany and Slovenia are heavily pushing for their own chances in coming years; whilst next year's Vuelta will start far away from its borders once again, this time around in the micronation of Monaco. The race is also very likely to finish, for the first time in its history, in the Canary Islands with a total of four stages and a potential ascent of the very popular Mount Teide.

And before the decade ends, the Giro could give a golden opportunity to another country that has been making the effort to propel its reputation i in the sport: Croatia. At the Cro Race, race organizers Kristijan Durasek has admitted that this is a plan currently in motion: "The Giro has already been to Croatia, it will certainly happen in the near future, but I don't want to speculate; it's not up to me to announce," the former pro said in an interview with Jutarnji.

"The fact is that it is objectively indeed planned. The Giro organizers often look for locations outside of Italy to host some stages. Typically, it involves two or three stages. If this were to happen, it would be a tremendous promotion for the entire country; I believe it will happen soon. [Cro Race director] Misovic also confirmed this. The target years are 2028 and 2029," he revealed.