Your complete guide to watching the Vuelta a Espana, with details including dates, times and the full TV schedule for each stage.
Vuelta a Espana is back in its summer slot, with several weeks of intense cycling action to pick up following the Olympic Games.
It’s been a hectic schedule for some of the world’s finest riders, with the Tour de France followed by Tokyo 2020 and now swiftly onto the Vuelta.
A typically competitive pack will hunt for victory over 21 stages and champion of the last two years Primoz Roglic aiming to complete a glorious hat-trick.
Team GB Olympic gold medallist Tom Pidcock is featuring in his first ever Grand Tour but he is far from the only British star to keep tabs on this month.
Adam Yates, Simon Carr and Hugh Carthy – who finished third last year, against the odds – are all among the pack of hopefuls. How will they fare?
Check out all the details you need to know about the Vuelta a Espana 2021, including how to watch the event, dates, teams, riders, the route, stages and past winners.
When does Vuelta a Espana 2021 start?
The event started on Saturday 14th August 2021, a return to the summer months following a delayed event last year due to COVID restrictions.
It will come to an end on Sunday 5th September 2021, with the iconic final stage to be held in Santiago de Compostela.
How to watch Vuelta a Espana 2021 on TV and live stream
UK viewers can can watch all of the action live on Eurosport.
Live coverage of every stage will be broadcast between the Eurosport 1 and 2 channels before a daily highlights show each evening.
Amazon Prime members can get a 7-day free trial to the Eurosport channel.
After the free trial, the Eurosport channel is £6.99 per month. Amazon Prime is £7.99 per month but can be accessed with a 30-day free trial.
Vuelta a Espana 2021 route and TV times
Saturday 14th August
Stage 1: Torino-Torino (8km, ITT)
Eurosport 1 from 4:35pm
Sunday 15th August
Stage 2: Stupinigi (Nichelino) – Novara (169.5km, flat)
Eurosport 1 from 1:40pm
Monday 16th August
Stage 3: Biella – Canale (203km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Tuesday 17th August
Stage 4: El Burgo de Osma – Molina de Aragon (163.6km, flat)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Wednesday 18th August
Stage 5: Tarancon – Albacete (184.4km, flat)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Thursday 19th August
Stage 6: Requena – Alto de Cullera (159km, flat)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Friday 20th August
Stage 7: Gandia – Balcon de Alicante (152km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 11:50am
Saturday 21st August
Stage 8: Santa Pola – La Manga del Mar Menor (163.3km, flat)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Sunday 22nd August
Stage 9: Puerto Lumbreras – Alto de Velefique (187.8km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 3:30pm
Monday 23rd August
Rest day
Tuesday 24th August
Stage 10: Roquetas de Mar – Rincon de la Victoria (190.2km, hilly)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Wednesday 25th August
Stage 11: Antequera – Valdepenas de Jaen (131.6km, hilly)
Eurosport 1 from
Thursday 26th August
Stage 12: Jaen – Cordoba (166.7km, hilly)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Friday 27th August
Stage 13: Belmez – Villanueva de la Serena (197.2km, flat)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Saturday 28th August
Stage 14: Don Benito – Pico Villuercas (159.7km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 1:35pm
Sunday 29th August
Stage 15: Navalmoral de la Mata – El Barraco (193.4km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 12:15pm
Monday 30th August
Rest day
Tuesday 31st August
Stage 16: Laredo – Santa Cruz de Bezana (170.8km, flat)
Eurosport 1 from 1:55pm
Wednesday 1st September
Stage 17: Unquera – Lagos de Covadonga (181.6km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 11am
Thursday 2nd September
Stage 18: Salas – Alto de Gamoniteiru (159.2km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 11:50am
Friday 3rd September
Stage 19: Tapia – Monforte de Lemos (187.8km, hilly)
Eurosport 1 from 1:55pm
Saturday 4th September
Stage 20: Sanxenxo – Mos (173.6km, mountain)
Eurosport 1 from 1:55pm
Sunday 5th September
Stage 21: Padron – Santiago de Compostela (33.7km, ITT)
Eurosport 1 from 4:45pm
Vuelta a Espana 2021 start list – teams and riders
The provisional start list for the Vuelta a Espana 2021:
Team Jumbo-Visma
ROGLIČ Primož, KUSS Sepp, OOMEN Sam, KRUIJSWIJK Steven, GESINK Robert, VAN HOOYDONCK Nathan, HOFSTEDE Lennard, BOUWMAN Koen
Lotto-Soudal
HOLMES Matt, KRON Andreas, CRAS Steff, MONIQUET Sylvain, VANHOUCKE Harm, FRISON Frederik, VERMEERSCH Florian, VAN GILS Maxim,
Movistar Team
VALVERDE Alejandro, LÓPEZ Miguel Ángel, MAS Enric, JACOBS Johan, ERVITI Imanol, ROJAS José Joaquín, VERONA Carlos, OLIVEIRA Nelson
Ag2r-Citroën Team
BOUCHARD Geoffrey, DEWULF Stan, PRODHOMME Nicolas, CHAMPOUSSIN Clément, VENTURINI Clément, TOUZÉ Damien, CALMEJANE Lilian, CHEREL Michaël
Astana-Premier Tech
VLASOV Aleksandr, IZAGIRRE Gorka, RODRÍGUEZ Óscar, SÁNCHEZ Luis León, IZAGIRRE Ion, ARANBURU Alex, NATAROV Yuriy, FRAILE Omar
Bahrain Victorious
LANDA Mikel, POELS Wout, PADUN Mark, MÄDER Gino, HAIG Jack, TRATNIK Jan, ARASHIRO Yukiya, CARUSO Damiano
Bora-Hansgrohe
SCHACHMANN Max, GROßSCHARTNER Felix, MEEUS Jordi, ZWIEHOFF Ben, GAMPER Patrick, BENEDETTI Cesare, LAAS Martin, PALZER Anton
Intermarché-Wanty Gobert Matériaux
MEINTJES Louis, TAARAMÄE Rein, HIRT Jan, EIKING Odd Christian, KREDER Wesley, VAN MELSEN Kévin, MINALI Riccardo, PETILLI Simone
Deceuninck – Quick-Step
JAKOBSEN Fabio, KNOX James, ŠTYBAR Zdenek, SÉNÉCHAL Florian, ČERNY Josef, BAGIOLI Andrea, VANSEVENENT Mauri, VAN LERBERGHE Bert
Groupama-FDJ
DÉMARE Arnaud, GENIETS Kevin, LE GAC Olivier, MOLARD Rudy, SINKELDAM Ramon, GUARNIERI Jacopo, LUDVIGSSON Tobias, ROUX Anthony
Team BikeExchange
ZEITS Andrey, HAMILTON Lucas, MATTHEWS Michael, NIEVE Mikel, HOWSON Damien, GRMAY Tsgabu, STANNARD Robert, SCHULTZ Nick
Team Qhubeka-Assos
CLAEYS Dimitri, JANSE VAN RENSBURG Reinardt, ARU Fabio, ARMÉE Sander, LINDEMAN Bert-Jan, SUNDERLAND Dylan, HENAO Sergio, BROWN Connor
EF Education-Nippo
CARTHY Hugh, CARR Simon, CRADDOCK Lawson, CAICEDO Jonathan, CAMARGO Diego, CORT Magnus, SCULLY Tom, KEUKELEIRE Jens
Israel Start-Up Nation
CIMOLAI Davide, WÜRTZ SCHMIDT Mads, NIV Guy, CATAFORD Alex, PICCOLI James, BERWICK Sebastian, EINHORN Itamar, VANMARKE Sep
Ineos Grenadiers
BERNAL Egan, YATES Adam, CARAPAZ Richard, PIDCOCK Thomas, SIVAKOV Pavel, VAN BAARLE Dylan, NARVÁEZ Jhonatan, PUCCIO Salvatore
Team DSM
BARDET Romain, STORER Michael, HAGA Chad, ARENSMAN Thymen, DAINESE Alberto, TUSVELD Martijn, DENZ Nico, HAMILTON Chris
Trek-Segafredo
CICCONE Giulio, BRAMBILLA Gianluca, SIMMONS Quinn, KIRSCH Alex, LÓPEZ Juan Pedro, ELISSONDE Kenny, REIJNEN Kiel, NIBALI Antonio
UAE Team Emirates
TRENTIN Matteo, MAJKA Rafał, DE LA CRUZ David, POLANC Jan, GIBBONS Ryan, OLIVEIRA Rui, MOLANO Sebastian, DOMBROWSKI Joe
Cofidis, Solutions Crédits
HERRADA Jesús, HERRADA José, BARCELÓ Fernando, ALLEGAERT Piet, MARTIN Guillaume, ROCHAS Rémy , MORIN Emmanuel, FINÉ Eddy
Burgos-BH
NAVARRO Daniel, MADRAZO Ángel, BOL Jetse, RUBIO Diego, CANAL Carlos, OKAMINA Ander, CABEDO Óscar, SANCHEZ Pelayo
Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
ABERASTURI Jon, LASTRA Jonathan, AMÉZQUETA Julen, CEPEDA Jefferson, BAGÜES Aritz, LAKZANO Oier, MARTÍN Sergio, CUADROS Álvaro
Alpecin-Fenix
VINE Jay, DE TIER Floris, PHILIPSEN Jasper, PLANCKAERT Edward, THWAITES Scott, MODOLO Sacha, BAYER Tobias, KRIEGER Alexander
Euskaltel-Euskadi
BIZKARRA Mikel, MATÉ Luis Ángel, BOU Joan, ITURRIA Mikel, MARTÍN Gotzon, SOTO Antonio Jesús, LOBATO Juan José, AZPARREN Xabier Mikel
Who won the Vuelta a Espana 2020?
Primoz Roglic secured back-t0-back Vuelta victories with a big win in November last year. The Slovenian rider held off Richard Carapaz and British ace Hugh Carthy to secure the points victory.
Vuelta a Espana past winners
2010: Vincenzo Nibali
2011: Chris Froome
2012: Alberto Contador
2013: Chris Horner
2014: Alberto Contador
2015: Fabio Aru
2016: Nairo Quintana
2017: Chris Froome
2018: Simon Yates
2019: Primož Roglič
2020: Primož Roglič
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