Last year, the 4th stage also started in Albufeira, but the riders went in the opposite direction. The finish was in Faro, where Milan Fretin sprinted to victory.
This year’s route is different, but the outcome could easily be the same. With a 5.6-kilometre climb at 4.2% halfway through, the course offers little in the way of difficulty. Granted, shortly after that sole categorised climb, there is a 2.8-kilometre ascent at 5.4%, but from that point on, proper climbing is done en route to Lagos.
Last year’s opening stage of the Volta ao Algarve also finished in Lagos, but it went totally haywire. When the peloton took a wrong turn in the finale, the bunch sprinted to the line… uh, what line? Meanwhile, Filippo Ganna rode along a parallel road – where the correct finish was – and crossed the line first. His joy was short-lived, as the victory was later taken away.
In short: there was no winner in Lagos last year. Two years ago, however, Gerben Thijssen claimed a sprint victory there, ahead of Marijn van den Berg and Jordi Meeus.
Stage 4’s Golden Kilometre begins 63.4 kilometres from the finish. This time, there are two intermediate sprints within 500 metres, each offering 3, 2 and 1 bonus seconds. At the line, the first three riders gain 10, 6 and 4 bonus seconds.
Fancy riding the route yourself? Download GPX 4th stage 2026 Volta ao Algarve.
Stage 4 of the Volta ao Algarve starts at 11:00 and is expected to finish at around 15:30 – both local times (WET).
Volta ao Algarve 2026 stage 4: routes & profiles
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