2026 Itzulia Basque Country Stage 5 Live Coverage
Welcome to our live coverage of Stage 5 of the 2026 Itzulia Basque Country! Our live profile and commentary are below, followed by a preview of the technical aspects of the route.
Course Preview
On the penultimate day of the Tour of the Basque Country, the riders tackle 3,841 metres of climbing over 176.2 kilometres. The route features nine ascents, the last of which is crested with 12.5 kilometres left to race.
The riders are only 11 kilometres in when the Elkorrieta looms. At the top of this 2.6-kilometre climb at 6.7%, there is no descent – on the contrary, they practically continue climbing on the Azurki. The 5.1 kilometres rise at an average of 7.4%, which may not sound too bad, but the middle section ramps up to 11% and also features the steepest ramp of 16%.
By the summit of the Azurki, the riders have been on the bike for 25 kilometres. A period of respite follows, with a descent and a stretch on the flat, before the Etumeta serves up 4.5 kilometres at an average of 7.5%. After the descent comes an uncategorised section of 5.5 kilometres at 3.2%, and roughly halfway through the race the riders crest the Kalbario, another punchy effort at 2.2 kilometres averaging 8%.
The riders return to the spot where the race got under way earlier in the day and then turn right onto the Krabelin. This is a brute of 5 kilometres with an average gradient of 9.6%. The middle section dishes up repeated slopes up to 17%, while the hardest stretch averages 12.9% over 2 kilometres.
Following the downhill and an intermediate sprint in Markina, the route continues to the Trabakua, a climb of 3.3 kilometres at 7.1%. Via a descent featuring two short uphill kicks, the riders reach Eibar again (second intermediate sprint) before tackling the Izua. This is not only the final steep climb of the day, it is also a familiar one, as it largely overlaps with the often-used ascent to the Sanctuary of Arrate. However, just before an extremely steep section, the riders now turn left, although it's still a monstrous effort: 4.1 kilometres of climbing at an average gradient of 9.2%.
After the Izua, 27 kilometres remain. The descent is familiar territory, as the riders covered it 40 kilometres earlier when descending from the Krabelin. After reaching the valley in Etxeberria, they now turn right onto the Urkaregi. The final climb of the day offers comparatively gentle slopes: over 5.2 kilometres, the average gradient is 4.7%.
The Urkaregi summit comes with 12.5 kilometres remaining. The riders then descend onto an undulating false flat all the way to the finish line in Eibar.
The first three riders across the line gain 10, 6, and 4 bonus seconds, while the intermediate sprints offer 6, 4, and 2 seconds.
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