Vuelta a España cancelled - Stage 3 brought to an abrupt end after hail storm forces riders into shelter
Cycling
Stage 3 of the 2026 Vuelta a España has been cancelled. The peloton was making its way up to Font Romeu when a hail storm suddenly began falling on the riders, forcing an immediate disruption of the race.
Ethan Hayter in the breakaway
The stage had seen a breakaway of six riders up the road including green jersey Ethan Hayter. On the penultimate climb of the day, Mats Wenzel took the head of the race, and was joined by Lorenzo Fortunato who attacked from the peloton.
Severe weather conditions that have been affecting western Europe were expected to lead to poor weather in the Pyrenees, and the worst fears came to be.
Rain began falling very heavily on the peloton during the climb itself, whilst the race broadcast continued to show heavy rain and hail falling a the finish line in Font Romeu. The weather conditions did not allow the helicopter to follow the race at a certain point.
Hail forces riders to seek shelter and cancel La Vuelta stage
UAE Team Emirates - XRG was at the head of the peloton inbetween climbs, whilst it was possible to see riders at the back of the peloton seeking shelter from the hail that began falling on them.
Pogacar was one of the riders then gesturing to bring the race to a halt. With 15 kilometers to go, the riders in the peloton headed towards a large building at the side of the road.
For several minutes, many waited for the weather to calm down, and for the race to potentially resume. But this was not possible. Only a few minutes after, the race organizers would officially cancel the race, not just neutralize it.
Tadej Pogacar hence remains in the lead of the Vuelta a España, with the stage having no official results. Tomorrow on stage 4, the UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider will continue to be in the red jersey.
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Carlos Silva is a writer for CyclingUpToDate.com, where he contributes race reports, interviews, analysis pieces, and live coverage of the international cycling calendar. Holding a degree in Sports from the Jean Piaget Institute, he combines academic knowledge of performance, training, and competition with hands-on journalism experience in professional cycling.
Throughout his career, Carlos has conducted interviews with leading figures in the sport, including Alberto Contador, Joaquim Rodríguez, Óscar Pereiro, João Almeida, Isaac del Toro, Derek Gee, John Degenkolb and Geraint Thomas. These conversations reflect direct engagement with Grand Tour winners, Classics specialists, and emerging talents.
He has provided on-site coverage at major events ranging from the Vuelta a España to the Tour de France, alongside stage races such as Vuelta a Andalucía, Volta ao Algarve, Volta a Portugal and O Gran Camiño. Covering the mythical climbs of the Giro d'Italia remains one of his professional ambitions.
Carlos is responsible for liveblog coverage of all major WorldTour races and beyond, including the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España. His reporting integrates verified data from ProCyclingStats to ensure statistical accuracy, contextual depth, and analytical precision.
A lifelong cycling enthusiast, he approaches storytelling across written, photographic, and video formats with a focus on credibility, tactical insight, and informed race interpretation.
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- great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
- Me too!!!!!Occam10-11-2026
- they can sign any 100 of top riders today but Pogi will win over Remco any time at the TDF unless something goes wrongabstractengineer10-11-2026
- the time for a GC rider to retire is when they cannot win stages, or have a significant level drop like from winner/podium into top 5/10 consistently. Roglic is still competitive and Froome raced even though he became pack fodder.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- He should be in a different team. It was detrimental. For them it does not matter if he does not develop. He should have gone to a team where they need him to succeed.abstractengineer10-11-2026
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