Saturday's stage 14 from Aosta to Pila is the first major Alpine test of the 2026 Giro d'Italia, with the general classification tightly packed. Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain Victorious) starts in the maglia rosa with a 33-second lead over Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike). The top 12 riders are separated by roughly two and a half minutes. By the end of the day, the whole outlook of the race will be very different.
The stage is 133km long with 4,350m of climbing across five categorised ascents and virtually no flat road. The riders tackle Saint-Barthélémy (15.8km at 6.5%, max 13%) almost immediately after the start in Aosta, descend to the Valpelline, climb to Doues, drop again, then grind over Lin Noir (7.4km at 7.9%) and Verrogne (5.6km at 6.9%) before the final ascent to Pila: 16.5km at 7.1% with a maximum gradient of 11%. Pila returns to the Giro after more than 30 years; Udo Bölts was a stage winner there when the Giro last visited in 1992.
The pure climbers will be rubbing their hands together with glee at the prospect of this stage while other riders such as the sprinters and rouleurs will be hoping to just make the time cut. The day has one very obvious conclusion. Vingegaard to take the prestigious 'Maglia e Tappa' (jersey and stage). With the Danish star just 33 seconds back on Eulálio it is surely the day he finally takes pink before a flat day in Milan and the final rest day before a brutal final week.
Stage 13 Results
May 21
| Pos | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 | Alberto Bettiol | XDS Astana TeamXDS Astana Team | 03:51:33 |
| 🥈 | Andreas Leknessund | Uno-X MobilityUno-X Mobility | + 26 |
| 🥉 | Jasper Stuyven | Soudal Quick-StepSoudal Quick-Step | + 44 |
| 4 | Michael Valgren | EF Education-EasyPostEF Education-EasyPost | + 44 |
| 5 | Mark Donovan | Pinarello-Q36.5 Pro Cycling TeamPinarello-Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team | + 44 |
| 6 | Josh Kench | Groupama-FDJ UnitedGroupama-FDJ United | + 44 |
| 7 | Mikkel Bjerg | UAE Team Emirates-XRGUAE Team Emirates-XRG | + 01:33 |
| 8 | Francesco Busatto | Alpecin-Premier TechAlpecin-Premier Tech | + 01:35 |
| 9 | Markus Hoelgaard | Uno-X MobilityUno-X Mobility | + 01:35 |
| 10 | Diego Sevilla | Team Polti VisitMaltaTeam Polti VisitMalta | + 01:35 |
| 11 | Lawrence Warbasse | Tudor Pro Cycling TeamTudor Pro Cycling Team | + 01:35 |
| 12 | Mirco Maestri | Team Polti VisitMaltaTeam Polti VisitMalta | + 01:48 |
| 13 | Toon Aerts | Lotto-IntermarchéLotto-Intermarché | + 01:48 |
| 14 | Axel Huens | Groupama-FDJ UnitedGroupama-FDJ United | + 03:45 |
| 15 | Johan Jacobs | Groupama-FDJ UnitedGroupama-FDJ United | + 04:13 |
| 16 | Damiano Caruso | Bahrain VictoriousBahrain Victorious | + 13:06 |
| 17 | Afonso Eulálio | Bahrain VictoriousBahrain Victorious | + 13:06 |
| 18 | Embret Svestad-Bårdseng | Netcompany INEOS Cycling TeamNetcompany INEOS Cycling Team | + 13:06 |
| 19 | Thymen Arensman | Netcompany INEOS Cycling TeamNetcompany INEOS Cycling Team | + 13:06 |
| 20 | Egan Bernal | Netcompany INEOS Cycling TeamNetcompany INEOS Cycling Team | + 13:06 |
| 21 | Jonas Vingegaard | Team Visma | Lease a BikeTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | + 13:06 |
| 22 | Davide Piganzoli | Team Visma | Lease a BikeTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | + 13:06 |
| 23 | Sepp Kuss | Team Visma | Lease a BikeTeam Visma | Lease a Bike | + 13:06 |
| 24 | Felix Gall | Decathlon CMA CGM TeamDecathlon CMA CGM Team | + 13:06 |
| 25 | Gregor Mühlberger | Decathlon CMA CGM TeamDecathlon CMA CGM Team | + 13:06 |
| 26 | Callum Scotson | Decathlon CMA CGM TeamDecathlon CMA CGM Team | + 13:06 |
| 27 | Giulio Pellizzari | Red Bull-BORA-hansgroheRed Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | + 13:06 |
| 28 | Johannes Staune-Mittet | Decathlon CMA CGM TeamDecathlon CMA CGM Team | + 13:06 |
| 29 | Giovanni Aleotti | Red Bull-BORA-hansgroheRed Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | + 13:06 |
| 30 | Jai Hindley | Red Bull-BORA-hansgroheRed Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | + 13:06 |
| 31 | Ben Zwiehoff | Red Bull-BORA-hansgroheRed Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | + 13:06 |
However, it won't be easy for Vingegaard. The series of tough climbs are perfect to tempt other GC stars out of the peloton who also have desires to go for the biggest prize.
That said, Vingegaard's Visma | Lease a Bike teammates will keep the pace high and the gaps minimal for the final 17km ascent to Pila where he can put in a devastating attack and blow the race wide open with his rivals fighting for the minor places.
The first climb of Saint-Barthélémy will blow the race open as riders lower down the GC fight will be looking to move up. After that, if it has settled down, I imagine Visma will come to the front to control things and set a strong tempo over the middle climbs before Sepp Kuss and Davide Piganzoli rip the race apart on the final climb with Vingegaard dealing the final blow into the final 5km or so.
Related - Giro d'Italia 2026 stage guide
Eulálio's task is to limit his losses. Matching Vingegaard on the final climb is less important than keeping the damage manageable before the race moves on. But the profile offers few places to recover and the accumulated climbing load makes bluffing almost impossible. On a day like this, 33 seconds can disappear inside the final 5km.
How stage 14 can reshape the classification
The fight for pink is the headline, but the wider GC battle underneath it may prove just as volatile. Third to tenth are tightly compressed, and several riders have clear reasons to attack.
Stage 14 key details
Aosta to Pila (Gressan) - 133km, 4,350m elevation gain
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Thymen Arensman (Netcompany Ineos) sits third at 2:03 and owes much of that position to strong time-trialling in stage 10. The Alps will test whether he can defend those gains on terrain that favours pure climbers. That said, he showed on the climb of Corno delle Scale that he is coming into great climbing form as well. Maybe he will be right up there with Vingegaard.
Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM), fourth at 2:30, lost significant time in that same time trial and is better suited to a day like this. If Gall rides to his mountain ability, the podium order could flip. His main issue is descending. Gall is easily the best climber behind Vingegaard. He has shown he can almost match the Dane on Blockhaus and Corno delle Scale already.
But, if teams like Netcompany-Ineos, Bahrain Victorious, Jayco-AlUla, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Tudor get involved on pushing the pace on the descents then the Austrian could find himself in a spot of bother. He saw his podium chances slip away at the Volta a Catalunya when Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) set a strong tempo and distanced Gall who eventually finished sixth in GC.
Behind them, it is what has become known as the 'WA Cup' as Ben O'Connor (Jayco-AlUla) at 2:50, Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) at 3:12, Michael Storer (Tudor) at 3:34 all come from the Western Australia city of Perth. Behind them, a dangerman in Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) at 3:42. If someone like Eulálio has a bad day, all these guys could potentially be right in the fight for podium places.
Then there's the breakaway potential – riders who may look at the first climb of the day to take advantage and go into the early break. With just 133km of racing on the menu, it invites the aggressive to make the most of the day and their form. Riders such as Egan Bernal, Jan Hirt, David De La Cruz, Igor Arrieta and Johannes Kulset, have every incentive to go early and ride hard on the front. The race has already shown how you can reap great rewards from going into the early break. Eulálio and Arrieta are perfect examples of that. If these riders do not try and attack on the first climb or even at all then, if they are not ill or injured, I don't know what their tactics are.
Stage 14 is harder, and the GC teams will care far more about control on the road to Pila. But an ambitious break complicates that control. If Bahrain Victorious has to chase while also protecting Eulálio and Visma-Lease a Bike waits to attack, the gap management on the middle climbs becomes messy. That could leave space for dangerous riders to gain time up the road while the favourites watch each other on Pila.
After stage 13, Eulálio told reporters on Cycling Pro Net's YouTube channel that tomorrow is a "super hard day." with the profile proving daunting. "I hope I have good legs tomorrow for a big fight." He continued.
The pink jersey continued his usual tone about Vingegaard saying that "Jonas doesn't need to do a big attack. Jonas is Jonas and I think the only rider that can beat him is Pogačar and Pogačar is not here." He said. "We just follow him and when he goes fast we drop and we fight behind him."
When asked if he would go on the attack, Vingegaard told reporters: "We will see how the legs are but, of course, if I feel good it will be nice to go for it."
Ominous words. By early evening on Saturday, the maglia rosa, the podium hierarchy and the viability of at least half the current top 10 should all be clearer. This is the stage this Giro has been building toward.
Cover image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com
