Approaching the end of the second week of the Giro, Jonas Vingegaard was perfectly poised in the Giro d'Italia's GC standings. The Dane won two stages in the mountains toward the end of the first week, but remained in second place overall, meaning his Visma Lease a Bike team had no obligation to put their riders on the front of the bunch to control the race.
The pink jersey remains on the shoulders of Bahrain-Victorious's Afonso Eulálio who has been in the lead since the end of stage five. Since then, Vingegaard has eaten into his lead, cutting the deficit from over six minutes to just 33 seconds after the long time trial on stage 10. Next in the standings is Netcompany's Thymen Arensman who, after placing second in the TT to team mate Filippo Ganna, jumped up the GC standings.
The 2026 Giro d'Italia started in Bulgaria the race's third foreign Grande Partenza in five years as organisers RCS continue to look beyond Italy's borders for places to host the race's opening weekend. The prestigious three-week, 21-stage race is the opener in the trio of Grand Tours, followed by the Tour de France in July and the Vuelta a España in August.
>>>> Giro d'Italia Women: Everything you need to know
Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) the two-time Tour de France winner won last year's Vuelta and so travels to the Giro looking to complete the set and become the eighth rider to do so.
Vingegaard's path to victory was made a little easier in the week's before the race as many other GC contenders including Joao Almeida, Richard Carapaz and Mikel Landa, pulled out, citing injury and illness. Their absence also paves the way for new riders to break through, like Red Bull Bora-Hansgrohe's Giulio Pellizzari, recent winner of the Tour of the Alps.
It's not just the GC action to keep you watching through the full 21 stages, with a strong sprinting field assembled for the race, including Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek), Paul Magnier (Soudal-Quick-step) - who took two stages in the opening weekend, and Ethan Vernon (NSN Cycling).
This year, Cycling Weekly will be covering the race with daily race reports, reactions following each stage, and analysis as the Italian showdown progresses. Scroll down to find the latest news and stories from the race.
Read more: Giro d'Italia 2026 route | Giro d'Italia 2026 start list | Giro d'Italia 2026 contenders | Abandons
Giro d'Italia 2026: Key details
Date | 8 - 31 May |
Total distance | 3459km |
Number of stages | 21 |
Start location | Nessebar, Bulgaria |
Finish location | Rome, Italy |
UCI ranking | WorldTour |
Edition | 109th |
Total climbing / elevation gain | 49,150m |
Leader's jersey colour | Pink (Maglia Rosa) |
Last winner | Simon Yates (GBr) |
TV coverage (UK) | TNT Sports |
TV coverage (US) | Max |
The peloton rides through Rome on Stage 21 of the Giro d'Italia 2024
Giro d'Italia 2026: The route
Giro d'Italia 2026 route. Image credit: RCS.
The Giro d'Italia 2026 begins with three stages in Bulgaria, as already announced, starting on 8 May, before 18 stages from the south to the north of Italy, via Naples, the Apennines, Milan, the Alps and the Dolomites. The 109th Giro finishes in Rome on 31 May.
Read more: Giro d'Italia 2026 route | Giro d'Italia 2926 start list | Giro d'Italia 2026 contenders
Giro d'Italia 2026: Stage-by-stage table
Stage | Day | Start | Finish | Distance | Terrain | Stage winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 8 May | Nessebar (Bulgaria) | Burgas (Bulgaria) | 156km | Flat | |
2 | 9 May | Burgas (Bulgaria) | Veliko Tarnovo (Bulgaria) | 220km | Hilly | |
3 | 10 May | Plovdiv (Bulgaria) | Sofia (Bulgaria) | 174km | Flat | |
Rest day | 11 May | Row 3 - Cell 2 | Row 3 - Cell 3 | Row 3 - Cell 4 | Row 3 - Cell 5 | Row 3 - Cell 6 |
4 | 12 May | Catanzaro | Cosenza | 144km | Flat | |
5 | 13 May | Praia a Mare | Potenza | 204km | Hilly | |
6 | 14 May | Paestum | Napoli | 161km | Flat | |
7 | 15 May | Formia | Blockhaus | 246km | Mountains | |
8 | 16 May | Chieti | Fermo | 159km | Medium mountains | |
9 | 17 May | Cervia | Corno alle Scale | 184km | Mountains | |
Rest day | 18 May | Row 10 - Cell 2 | Row 10 - Cell 3 | Row 10 - Cell 4 | Row 10 - Cell 5 | Row 10 - Cell 6 |
10 | 19 May | Viareggio | Massa | 40.2km | ITT | |
11 | 20 May | Porcari | Chiavari | 178km | Hilly | |
12 | 21 May | Imperia | Novi Ligure | 177km | Flat | |
13 | 22 May | Alessandria | Verbania | 186km | Hilly | |
14 | 23 May | Aosta | Pila | 133km | Mountains | Row 15 - Cell 6 |
15 | 24 May | Voghera | Milan | 136km | Flat | Row 16 - Cell 6 |
Rest day | 25 May | Row 17 - Cell 2 | Row 17 - Cell 3 | Row 17 - Cell 4 | Row 17 - Cell 5 | Row 17 - Cell 6 |
16 | 26 May | Bellinzona (Switzerland) | Carì (Switzerland) | 113km | Mountains | Row 18 - Cell 6 |
17 | 27 May | Cassano d'Adda | Andalo | 100km | Hilly | Row 19 - Cell 6 |
18 | 28 May | Fai della Paganella | Pieve di Soligo | 166km | Hilly | Row 20 - Cell 6 |
19 | 29 May | Feltre | Alleghe | 151km | Mountains | Row 21 - Cell 6 |
20 | 30 May | Gemona del Friuli | Piancavallo | 199km | Mountains | Row 22 - Cell 6 |
21 | 31 May | Rome | Rome | 131km | Flat | Row 23 - Cell 6 |
Giro d'Italia 2026: The jerseys
The rider wearing the pink jersey (maglia rosa) leads the general classification. This is the rider who has accumulated the fastest time around the route so far, inclusive of time bonuses collected. On the final day, it is awarded to the overall general classification winner along with the Trofeo Senza Fine.
There are other jerseys up for grabs too. The purple (ciclamino) jersey is awarded to the rider who has accumulated the most points. More points are offered at the end of flatter, punchier stages than on mountain finishes, so this is a jersey for the sprinters. The blue (azzura) jersey goes to the rider who accumulates the most points on classified climbs, and the white (bianca) jersey is like the pink jersey but given to the best young rider under 26.
Read about the Giro d'Italia jerseys here.
More about the Giro d'Italia 2026
- Giro d'Italia 2026 full route details
- Giro d'Italia 2026 startlist
- Giro d'Italia 2026 GC contenders
- Giro d'Italia jerseys
- How much prize money does the winner of the Giro d'Italia get?
- How to watch the Giro d'Italia
- All the abandons from the Giro d'Italia 2026
Stage 20 of the Giro d'Italia 2024, to Bassano del Grappa
Giro d'Italia: Past winners
Year | Winner | Country | Team |
2025 | Simon Yates | Great Britain | Visma-Lease a Bike |
2024 | Tadej Pogačar | Slovenia | UAE Team Emirates |
2023 | Primož Roglič | Slovenia | Jumbo-Visma |
2022 | Jai Hindley | Australia | Bora-Hansgrohe |
2021 | Egan Bernal | Colombia | Ineos Grenadiers |
2020 | Tao Geoghegan Hart | Great Britain | Ineos Grenadiers |
2019 | Richard Carapaz | Ecuador | Movistar |
2018 | Chris Froome | Great Britain | Team Sky |
2017 | Tom Dumoulin | Netherlands | Sunweb |
2016 | Vincenzo Nibali | Italy | Astana |
2015 | Alberto Contador | Spain | Tinkoff-Saxo |
2014 | Nairo Quintana | Colombia | Movistar |
2013 | Vincenzo Nibali | Italy | Astana |
-
Honorary degrees and the great pee debate: the Giro d'Italia through social mediaThis week's social media round-up, direct from the Giro
-
Who is leading the Giro d'Italia 2026? Jonas Vingegaard moves into the pink jersey after stage 14 victoryThe full general classification, along with the latest stage result, and the standings for the other jerseys
-
'I knew every single corner in the last 50km' – Alberto Bettiol solos from breakaway to Giro d'Italia stage 13 victoryItalian seals XDS Astana's third win of the race
-
Jonas Vingegaard has been riding while sick, Visma-Lease a Bike sports director revealsJesper Mørkøv has confirmed that Vingegaard has been feeling green during his push for pink
-
'I will pee in the bottle to not pee in somebody's front yard' – Victor Campenaerts confesses to being pioneer of 'pee-gate'Visma-Lease a Bike rider vows to stop urinating in bottles after Giro d'Italia warning
9 Comments -
Who has abandoned the Giro d'Italia 2026? Lotto-Intermarché reduced to four riders as Lennert van Eetvelt withdraws, along with stage-winner Ballerini (XDS Astana) – find out who else has bailedAfter an illness-afflicted build-up and a crash-packed Grande Partenza, several significant names have already bid arrivederci to the Giro – here’s the full list of abandonees
2 Comments -
'Mas was the strongest in the climb… I knew I had to play my game' – Jhonatan Narváez sprints to victory on stage 11 of the 2026 Giro d'ItaliaOn a day dominated by the breakaway, the Ecuadorian rider smashed out his third stage win in this year's Giro, making it four for UAE
4 Comments -
'Part of me thinks he's not been at 100%' – Geraint Thomas on Jonas Vingegaard's form after stage 10 Giro d'Italia time trialThomas was speaking on his Watts Occurring podcast following the stage
2 Comments -
'I've never been super good at it' – Jonas Vingegaard has 'terrible' time trial at Giro d'Italia, but remains in GC box-seatVisma-Lease a Bike rider loses time to rivals Thymen Arensman, Derek Gee-West and Ben O'Connor
-
'I'm really happy to finally find a good TT without a climb' – Filippo Ganna decimates all comers in Giro d'Italia stage 10 time trialThe Italian wins, while Alfonso Eulálio clings on to the GC lead
-
'We haven't left any stone unturned' – Inside TNT Sports' Giro d'Italia coverage, from Orla Chennaoui in the studio to Jens Voigt on a motorbikeOffered a chance to find out how the show works behind-the-scenes, we went to Italy and London
13 Comments -
How to watch Giro d'Italia 2026: Everything you need to live stream the Italian Grand TourAll the key information on broadcasters and free live streams for the Giro d'Italia from May 8 - 31, so you can watch the Italian Grand Tour online, on TV, from anywhere.
-
Jonas Vingegaard on form, Felix Gall impressive and pink is still a long way off: Five things we learned in the first week of the Giro d'ItaliaA first full week that ranged from hilly to mountainous saw the ride blow wide open
-
Riders warned not to urinate in bottles and discard them at the Giro d'ItaliaOrganisers ask riders to 'respect the image of cycling and the Giro d’Italia'
9 Comments -
Jonas Vingegaard takes a second mountain top victory at stage 9 of the Giro d'ItaliaFelix Gall comes in second place as the General classification takes shape
2 Comments -
'We ride well, we ride smart' - Jhonathan Narváez takes a second stage win after a crazy stage 8 at the Giro d'ItaliaThe breakaway take the day after an 80km battle, with attack after attack peppering the opening half of the stage
-
'He is a guy we have to worry about' – is Felix Gall going to be Jonas Vingegaard's biggest challenger at this Giro d'Italia?First summit finish of the Giro d'Italia leads to shifts in GC but Gall trails Vingegaard by 17 seconds
-
'We just wanted to go for the win' – Jonas Vingegaard solos to Giro d'Italia stage 7 win on Blockhaus summit finishSome contenders lose big chunks of time, but Felix Gall stays close
-
Bunch sprints are dangerous enough and we don't need to make them spicier – Jonathan Milan had a point at the Giro d'ItaliaThe leading riders came down on yesterday's Giro d'Italia stage,on a tight turn in sight of the line
-
'Don't be like this guy' – police report Giro d'Italia spectators who lunged at ridersMedia reports say two men have been identified and could face charges
-
From Egan Bernal to Jonas Vingegaard and more: the complete Giro d'Italia 2026 start listAll the riders for the first Grand Tour of the year
-
'I really don't get it' – Jonathan Milan calls out Giro d'Italia route choice after crash mars bunch sprintThe front of the peloton was held up by a crash on cobbles inside 400m to go on stage 6
4 Comments -
'Today was not on the plan' – Davide Ballerini wins Giro d'Italia stage 6 after sprint favourites crash on final bendGroenewegen, Milan and Magnier caught up in slippery finale in Napoli
-
'I thought it was impossible but I kept pushing' – Igor Arrieta defies all the odds to squeeze out a victory on Giro d'Italia stage 5His breakaway partner Alfonso Eulálio now wears pink
4 Comments -
'This is something really crazy' – Giulio Ciccone completes lifelong dream of wearing pink at Giro d'ItaliaItalian cannily took bonus second to move into lead
-
'This victory is also for my team-mates' – Jhonatan Narváez sprints to Giro d'Italia stage 4 win as UAE Team Emirates-XRG put woes behind themUAE Team Emirates-XRG bounce back from torrid time in Bulgaria
3 Comments -
Paint the town pink: 12 Giro-inspired products to add to your wardrobe or bike this summerThe Giro d'Italia is synonymous with pink, so why not upgrade this summer or just give an honourable nod to the first Grand Tour of the year with a splash of Rosa?
-
A new French star, Jonas Vingegaard shows his mettle, and a huge crash ends race for some – Five things we learned from the Giro d'Italia's opening weekendThe Grande Partenza in Bulgaria was not without incident to say the least, leaving us with plenty to think on
2 Comments -
Cycling TV and streaming guide: How to watch the Giro d'Italia, Vuelta a Burgos Feminas, Veenendaal and Antwerp Port Epic this weekEverything you need to know about how to watch cycling online and on TV wherever you are in the world, with a schedule of races, events, and broadcasts this week.
14 Comments
