Cartagena means literally ‘new city’. But it’s not that new at all. The Carthaginians formed the town in the third century before Christ. While the Carthaginians were seafarers, the peloton is quite the opposite. So the route leads inland into the Murcia region.
The first part of the stage is flat before the route starts to climb after approximately one hour of racing. The Puerto Casas de Marina la Perdiz is a 11.5 kilometres long climb at 4.9%. The route then continues in a more lumpy fashion. The roads go up and down during the rest of the day, but both the length of the hills and the gradients are not intimidating at all.
On paper, stage 9 at La Vuelta looks promising for attackers and if the race does pan out with a successful breakaway the finish climb is sure to liquidate the lesser climbers on board. It is 8.2 kilometres long and averaging 5.5%, but that’s not an apt description at all. It’s a wildly irregular ascent with short downhills playing leapfrog with sections at 15%. The steepest stretch goes up at 20%, while the last kilometre ramps up to 9.5%.
The first three riders on the line gain time bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds, while the intermediate sprint comes with 6, 4 and 2 seconds.
Ride the route yourself? Download GPX 9th stage 2023 Vuelta.
Another interesting read: results 9th stage 2023 Vuelta.
Vuelta a España 2023 stage 9: routes, profiles, more
Click on the images to zoom
Related articles Favourites stage 9: Attackers on irregular finish climb - Vuelta 2023 The Route - Vuelta 2023 Riders - Vuelta 2023 Withdrawals - Vuelta 2023 Route and stages - Vuelta 2023 Welcome to Cycling Paradise Andorra GC Favourites - Vuelta 2023 More articles Tour de France 2024: The Route
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 1: Florence - Rimini
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 2: Cesenatico - Bologna
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 3: Piacenza - Turin
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 5: Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne - Saint-Vulbas
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 7: Nuits-Saint-Georges - Gevrey-Chambertin
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 8: Semur-en-Auxois - Colombey-les-Deux-Églises
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 9: Troyes - Troyes
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 11: Evaux-les-Bains - Le Lioran
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 12: Aurillac - Villeneuve-sur-Lot
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 14: Pau - Pla d'Adet
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 15: Loudenvielle - Plateau de Beille
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 16: Gruissan - Nîmes
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 17: Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux - Superdévoluy
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 18: Gap - Barcelonnette
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 19: Embrun - Isola 2000
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 20: Nice - Col de la Couillole
Tour de France 2024 Route stage 21: Monaco - Nice
Giro 2024: The Route
Giro 2024 Route stage 1: Turin - Turin
Giro 2024 Route stage 2: San Fransesco al Campo - Oropa
Giro 2024 Route stage 3: Novara - Fossano
Giro 2024 Route stage 4: Acqui Terme - Andora
Giro 2024 Route stage 5: Genoa - Lucca
Giro 2024 Route stage 6: Viareggio - Rapolano Terme
Giro 2024 Route stage 7: Foligno - Perugia
Giro 2024 Route stage 8: Spoleto - Prati di Tivo
Giro 2024 Route stage 9: Naples - Naples
Cycling Calendar 2024