Giro d’Italia Women 2026, a Thrilling Journey from Romagna to Saluzzo

The pink thread that unites Italy every May will stretch one week further this year. Right after the Giro d’Italia 2026, the Giro d’Italia Women 2026 will take centre stage. The race has a new calendar slot and will be held from 30 May to 7 June, overlapping the final weekend of the men’s race and doubling the cycling celebration.

While the men tackle Piancavallo and then parade through Rome for their triumphant finale, the women will already be immersed in the 37th edition of the Giro Women, which will cross seven Italian regions: Emilia–Romagna, Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Trentino, Lombardy and Piedmont.

A Seaside Beginning On The Adriatic

The Grande Partenza will unfold in Emilia–Romagna, along the Romagna Riviera, with a flat opening stage from Cesenatico to Ravenna, tailor-made for sprinters. The finale features a 23 km circuit, to be covered three times before the finish line.

The second stage also stays close to the Adriatic and again favours the fastest women. This time we start in Veneto, from H-Farm in Roncade – a hub of innovation bridging startups, education and digital project – before heading to Caorle. The only obstacle is the now-famous Muro di Ca’ del Poggio (Cat. 4, 1.2 km at 12.2%), tackled 90 km from the finish and likely to influence only the first Maglia Azzurra classification. The Adriatic beach tour continues with Stage 3, setting off from Bibione and ending in Friuli, in Buja, hometown of Jonathan Milan and Alessandro De Marchi. Here the race gets trickier: 17 km from the finish, the riders face the punchy Montenars climb (Cat. 3), 3 km long with brutal, double-digit gradients in the final stretch.

Here Come the Dolomites

The first major blow to the general classification will come in Stage 4, the Belluno–Nevegal time trial, 12.7 km of pure effort. It borders on a mountain TT: 5.3 km of gentle terrain followed by 7.5 km of climbing, with 4.5 km consistently in double-digit gradients.
Another sorting stage follows: Longarone to Santo Stefano di Cadore, right in the heart of the Dolomites. The riders must scale the Passo Tre Croci (Cat. 1, 7.8 km at 7.5%), Passo Sant’Antonio (Cat. 2, 7.6 km at 8.3%), and then twice the vicious ascent to Costalissoio (Cat. 3, 2.7 km at 10%), with a first pass under the finish arch before the second ascent. The final climb ends with just over 12 km remaining, but the trio of climbs crammed into the final 50 km guarantees major selection.

After two intense days, Stage 6 offers some relief: Ala to Brescello, starting in Trentino, crossing Veneto and Lombardy, and ending in Emilia. With no KOM climbs, the sprinters should reclaim centre stage.

But Stage 7 – the longest of the 2026 Giro Women at 165 km – is wide open. From Sorbolo Mezzani to Salice Terme in Lombardy, the race lights up in the last 40 km: first with the gentle Pietramagna climb (Cat. 3), then the tougher approach to the Castello di Oramala (Cat. 3, 4.5 km at 7.4%) just 24 km from the finish. Perfect terrain for long-range ambushes.

Giro d’Italia Woman 2026, queen Stage featuring Colle delle Finestre

The highlight of the race comes on the penultimate day. In the stage from Rivoli to Sestriere, the riders will face the Colle delle Finestre for the first time in the history of the Giro Women—this edition’s Cima Alfonsina Strada, at 2178 m. The climb is monstrous: 18.5 km at 9.2% average, with the final 8 km on gravel. A few months ago, we saw Simon Yates overturn the men’s Giro on this very ascent. Anything can happen.

The finish, following tradition, is at Sestriere (Cat. 3, 16.2 km at 3.8%): easy on paper, but deadly after the Finestre.

By this point the GC will be largely defined, but relaxation is not an option: the finale is no mere parade. Start and finish are both in Saluzzo, but the stage packs 2200 m of elevation gain. The peloton tackles the fearsome Montoso (Cat. 1, 9.1 km at 9.2%) – far from the finish, but unforgiving – before heading toward the Colletta di Paesana (Cat. 3) and then the Colletta di Brondello (Cat. 2, 4.6 km at 7.8%), the latter cresting 35 km from the finish. If the gaps are still small, there will be plenty of chances to try and turn the race upside down.

Find out all the details about every stage of the Giro d’Italia Women 2026!