The Volta a Catalunya 2022 will have fourteen intermediate sprints
March 19 th 2022 - 12:23
(Barcelona, 19-03-2022).- Each of the seven stages of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya 2022, which will be held between 21 and 27 March, will have two intermediate sprints along the route. These sprints will distribute points in the regularity classification and bonus seconds in the general classification, which could be decisive in the final classification.
Thanks to the collaboration of the towns that participate in the Volta a Catalunya route, in 2022 there will be fourteen intermediate sprints. At each one of them, 3, 2 and 1 points will be distributed for the classification of regularity and the same bonus seconds for the first three classified at each pass, respectively.
The first stage, of 171.2 kilometres with start and finish in Sant Feliu de Guíxols, will have a first intermediate sprint at the first pass through the finish line in Sant Feliu de Guíxols, 36.7 kilometres from the finish, and a second intermediate sprint at Calonge i Sant Antoni, 13.2 kilometres from the end, an added incentive in an already nervous finish after the ascent to the Alt de Romanyà.
The second stage will connect L'Escala and Perpinyà on a 202.4 kilometre route that will have two intermediate sprints in its central part. El Port de la Selva at kilometre 116, shortly after the ascent to the Coll de Sa Perafita, and Llançà at kilometre 123.3 of the stage will enliven the stage with their intermediate sprints.
The third stage between Perpinyà and La Molina, the high mountain finish with 161.1 kilometres of route, will have intermediate sprints in Llívia at kilometre 97.7 of the stage, after having overcome the first category pass of Mont-Louis, and shortly after in Puigcerdà, at kilometre 104 of the stage, before facing the chain of the Collada de Toses and La Molina.
A new mountain stage awaits on the fourth stage, between La Seu d'Urgell and the ascent to Boí Taüll with a total of 166.7 kilometres. Two intermediate sprints will await the riders before this final pass: they will be located at El Pont de Suert, at kilometre 134.9 of the stage, and then Barruera-Vall de Boí will be the stage for the second sprint located at the base of Boí Taüll, just 18.1 kilometres from the finish line.
The fifth stage will link la Pobla de Segur and Vilanova i la Geltrú on a 206.3 kilometre route, the longest of this Volta a Catalunya 101, which will be enlivened in its final stretch by the two intermediate sprints located in la Bisbal del Penedès, 29.8 kilometres from the finish line, and in the Pantà de Foix, a special attraction 16.6 kilometres from the finish in Vilanova.
The sixth stage, with the Costa Daurada as the protagonist, will also have two special stages for the intermediate sprints. The first will be located in Prades, at kilometre 66.6 of the stage, while the second intermediate sprint of the day will be at the Viaducte dels Masos, just 21.6 kilometres from the finish in Cambrils.
Finally, the always nervous last stage with 138.6 kilometres starting and finishing in Barcelona will have two sprints that, as always, can contribute to resolve the race. The first one will be one more year in Molins de Rei, at kilometre 8.4 of the stage, while the second intermediate sprint of the day and the last of the Volta 2022 will be located in Castelldefels, at kilometre 68.1 of the stage. After this, the final battle will be open on the Montjuic circuit.
The Volta a Catalunya 2022 will get underway on Monday 21 March and will once again feature world-class participation in its seven stages until the finish on Sunday 27 March. Reigning Olympic champion Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) and Volta winners such as Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team), Richie Porte (INEOS Grenadiers) and Nairo Quintana (Team Arkéa Samsic) will be joined by stars such as world champions Philippe Gilbert and Michal Kwiatkowski, Tom Dumoulin (Team Jumbo-Visma) and a notable participation of Catalan cyclists with names like Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) and Roger Adrià (Team Kern Pharma).