The first 70 kilometres are nothing to worry about. The riders pedal on flat to rolling terrain to the first of three KOM climbs. Mirador del Fito is 7 kilometers long and averaging 8.1%. The riders then descend to a short unclassified hill before passing through Canga de Onis at the base of the finish climb. But instead of a premature dash to the lakes the route continues false flat upwards to the base of the Collada Llomena. The riders tackle the climb on the hardest side, which means it’s a 7.6 kilometres toil with an average gradient of 9.3%. The toughest section – 2 kilometres at over 11% – lies at the heart of the ascent.
The riders reach the summit with 56 kilometres remaining. Most of it goes downhill and after approximately 10 kilometres of false flat the finish climb kicks in.
The scenery of the ascent to the Lagos de Covadonga is spectacular and the same goes for the climb. It’s 12.5 kilometres long and averaging 6.9%, which is really just a nugatory statistic. The first 7 kilometres rise at approximately 10% before the profile changes and short drops start playing leapfrog with 20% ramps. The Lagos de Covadonga are at the end of the road, there is only one side to ascend to the lakes. Primoz Roglic is the last winner at the iconic location. In 2021, he joined the ranks of riders such as Marino Lejarreta, Pedro Delgado, Laurent Jalabert, Luis Herrera, Nairo Quintana, and Thibaut Pinot.
The route of 2021’s Covadonga stage also took in the Collada Llomena as the penultimate climb. Roglic attacked with Egan Bernal just before the steepest part of the Llomena before he left the Colombian behind just before the steepest part of the finish climb.
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 4 seconds.
Vuelta a España 2024 stage 16: profiles & more
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