2022 Vuelta a España Stage 18 Live Coverage
Welcome to our live coverage of Stage 18 of the 2022 Vuelta a España! Our live profile and commentary are below, followed by a preview of the technical aspects of the route.
Course Preview
Stage 18 at La Vuelta revolves around the highest town in all of Extremadura, Piornal. It's perched high on a mountain that forms the backdrop of a number of circuits in the second half of the race. The finish climb is 13.3 kilometres long, while the race totals 192 kilometres.
Trujillo is a town boasting many medieval and renaissance buildings. In the 1500s a number of conquistadores were Trujillanos, who went to America and returned with their ships packed with gold, silver and potatoes.
The first 100 kilometres take place on undulating terrain and then the riders tackle the first climb towards Piornal. They don’t go to the finish place this first time, as they turn left near the Cascada de la Desesperá to descend towards the valley. The ascent is 3.7 kilometres long and averages 8.6%.
The second climb does lead into Piornal. First, the riders climb to the Yuste Monastery – 4.8 kilometres at 4.3% – and 8 kilometres later the actual climb to Piornal begins. On this side, the ascent is 13.5 kilometres while the average gradient sits at 5%.
The riders descend towards the River Jerte and after a flat section through the valley the finish climb kicks in: 13,3 kilometres at 5.6%.
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