The stage kicks off in the capital of microstate Andorra. The riders descend into Spain and tackle the Port del Cantó just over 10 kilometres in the race. It’s a beast of a climb, stretching for 24.7 kilometres at an average gradient of 4.4%. You could break it down into sections: the first 5.9 kilometres climb at a punishing 7.9%, then it levels off, only to ramp up again in the section before the Mirador de la Creu de Gulls, averaging 6.8% over 3.8 kilometres.
From the summit, the riders plunge down a 19-kilometre descent to Sort. A 27-kilometre section through the valley then leads onto the Puerto de Creu de Perves, another monster – 23.1 kilometres long. Luckily, the gradient is manageable, averaging 3.5%, although the last 5.7 kilometre rise at 6.3%
At the top of the Creu de Perves, the riders have just past the race’s midway marker. The descent is interrupted by a short uphill section, and once the riders reach the valley, the road begins to rise again. At first, it’s merely a false flat, but it culminates in the Coll de L’Espina: 7.1 kilometres with an average gradient of 6.5%.
The downhill commences a few kilometres after the KOM sprint, taking the riders down to Castejón de Sos. From there, they still have nearly 30 kilometres to ride, and it’s almost entirely uphill. The first half of the climb is gentle, rising at around 2%, but things soon get serious. A stretch of 3.9 kilometres at 9.2% leads into Cerler. After a short descent, the road kicks up again for 2.7 kilometres at a brutal 9.8%. Another brief downhill leads to the final uphill kicker: 3 kilometres at around 6 to 7%, with the last kilometre levelling off.
The final 12.1 kilometres of the 7th stage are averaging 5.8%.
The first three riders across the line gain 10, 6 and 4 bonus seconds, while the intermediate sprint atop the Alto de la Comella carries 6, 4 and 2 seconds.
Fancy riding the route yourself? Download GPX 7th stage 2025 Vuelta a España.
Another interesting read: results 7th stage 2025 Vuelta a España.
Vuelta a España 2025 stage 7: routes, profiles, videos
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