The 2026 Giro d'Italia Women was the 37th edition of the Giro d'Italia Women, a women's road cycling stage race in Italy, and the 19th event of the 2026 UCI Women's World Tour calendar. The race started on 30 May and finished on 7 June. The race was organised by RCS Sport, which also organises the men's Giro d'Italia.
The race moved to June from its traditional July date – and started on the same weekend as the finish of the men's race. The race previously had to compete for attention with the more famous men's , and organisers had previously stated that they wished to move the calendar position of the race, so that the race is not overshadowed. Compared to other races in the UCI Women's World Tour, more ranking points are now awarded at the Giro d'Italia Women, Tour de France Femmes and the Vuelta Femenina – elevating these races in status.
The race was won by Dutch rider Demi Vollering () for the first time, after a strong performance on the final stage overcame a deficit of just under a minute. Vollering won two stages on her way to victory, becoming only the second woman after Annemiek van Vleuten to win all three Grand Tours. Second overall was German rider Antonia Niedermaier (), who performed strongly throughout the race, finishing in the top 5 on four stages. Third overall was Dutch rider Anna van der Breggen (), who led the race for four stages, after winning the mountainous individual time trial on stage 4.
In the race's other classifications, the mountains classification was won by Vollering, and the points classification was won by Italian rider Elisa Balsamo (), who won 4 stages. Her main rival Lorena Wiebes was disqualified from the race on stage 1 due to an underweight bike. The young rider classification was won by Canadian rider Isabella Holmgren (), who finished 7th overall after finishing in the top 10 on four stages. won the teams classification.
Teams
Twenty-one teams participated in the race. All fourteen UCI Women's WorldTeams were automatically invited. They were joined by two UCI Women's ProTeams and five UCI Women's Continental Teams.
UCI Women's WorldTeams
UCI Women's Pro Teams
UCI Women's Continental Teams
Route and stages
In December 2025, the route was announced by organisers RCS Sport. It comprised nine days of racing with nine stages, covering a total of with of elevation gain. The race started in Cesenatico, Emilia-Romagna in northern Italy, before heading north through the Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia regions, before heading west through the Trentino, Lombardy and Piedmont regions. The race finished in Saluzzo, Piedmont.
The race had two summit finishes, with an uphill time trial between Belluno and in the Veneto region on stage 4, and a summit finish in Sestriere following the classic climb of Colle delle Finestre on stage 8. The Colle delle Finestre climb is in length with an average gradient of 9.2%, with the final of the climb on gravel roads. As the highest climb of the race, the first rider to pass Colle delle Finestre () was awarded the "Cima Alfonsina Strada" – a prize named after Italian cyclist Alfonsina Strada, who took part in the men's Giro d'Italia in 1924.
The race returned to 9 stages in length, and was the longest edition of the Giro d'Italia Women since the of the race. As with previous editions, the route required a waiver from the Union Cycliste Internationale, as Women's WorldTour races have a maximum race length of six days.
Reacting to the route, Rouleur stated that the "iconic climb" of Colle delle Finestre "makes clear just how demanding this route is" and that "pink jersey may not be decided until the very last minute" owing to the "mountainous back-loaded route". Cycling News called the route "really tough", summarising that a "lowkey start builds to a big crescendo with the Colle delle Finestre, a tough stage in the Dolomites, and a challenging uphill [time trial]". 2024 and 2025 winner Elisa Longo Borghini stated that she "really [likes] the route" and that "we needed an iconic climb like the Colle delle Finestre", and it "will decide the 2026 Giro Women". +Stage characteristicsStageDateCourseDistanceTypeWinner1 30 May Cesenatico to Ravenna Flat stage 2 31 May Roncade H-Farm to Caorle Flat stage 3 1 June Bibione to Buja Hilly stage 4 2 June Belluno to Individual time trial 5 3 June Longarone to Santo Stefano di Cadore Mountain stage 6 4 June Ala to Brescello Flat stage 7 5 June Sorbolo Mezzani to Salice Terme Hilly stage 8 6 June Rivoli to Sestriere Colle delle Finestre Mountain stage 9 7 June Saluzzo to Saluzzo Mountain stage Total
Race overview
Prior to the start of the race, Demi Vollering () was considered favourite for the overall victory. Other contenders for the general classification (GC) included 2024 and 2025 Giro d'Italia Women winner Elisa Longo Borghini (), four-time Giro d'Italia Women winner Anna van der Breggen () and world time trial champion Marlen Reusser (). Cycling News considered that the race would have "one of its biggest battles in recent history", owing to the greater gap between the Giro d'Italia Women and the Tour de France Femmes.
Initial stages and mountain time trial The first stage was to Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region, with Lorena Wiebes () winning the stage in a sprint finish ahead of Elisa Balsamo (). Wiebes was later disqualified from the race as her bike was under the weight limit of . Balsamo was awarded the stage win instead, and therefore led the . called Wiebes disqualification "an exceptionally severe sanction" as there was no advantage to an underweight bike on a sprint stage and that Wiebes' bike was identical to that used throughout the season. subsequently considered legal action against the Union Cycliste Internationale, cycling's governing body.
The race moved to the Veneto region, with the second stage finishing in Caorle. Balsamo won the stage in a sprint finish, retaining her lead in the , with a 20 second lead over most of the peloton thanks to bonus seconds.
The third stage was a hilly course, finishing in Buja in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. On the climbs, GC contenders split the peloton, with a smaller group heading to the finish. In the uphill sprint to the finish line, Balsamo won her third stage ahead of Lily Williams () and Femke Gerritse (). Balsamo maintained her lead in the , now around 30 seconds over most of the peloton.
The fourth stage of the race was a individual time trial from Belluno to in the Veneto region. The uphill course included a climb with an average gradient of 8.2% and a maximum gradient of 14%. The fastest time of 31 minutes 38 minutes was set by Anna van der Breggen, with Marlen Reusser in second place, 1 minute 4 seconds behind. Demi Vollering finished third, six seconds slower. Van der Breggen therefore took the lead in the , with Balsamo falling to 56th overall. Van der Breggen last wore the maglia rosa of the leaders jersey on her way to victory at the 2021 edition of the race.
The fifth stage remained in the Veneto region, with a mountain stage in the Dolomites with 4 categorised climbs including the 1st category . On the last climb of the day, Vollering, van der Breggen, Antonia Niedermaier () and Isabella Holmgren () formed a group of four riders. By the top of the climb, they had an advantage of 40 seconds over Longo Borghini and Niamh Fisher-Black (), with Reusser 15 seconds further behind. Descending to the finish, the gap tightened however the group of four stayed away. Vollering took her first Giro d'Italia Women stage win by outsprinting van der Breggen and Niedermaier. Van der Breggen maintained her lead in the , with Vollering gaining 10 seconds to move to second overall. Reusser finished 53 seconds behind Vollering, falling to fifth overall – thereby elevating Niedermaier moved to third overall.
The sixth stage of the race took riders south to Brescello in the Emilia-Romagna region on a flat route. Despite crosswinds on the stage, Balsamo won her fourth stage of the race in a sprint finish – further extending their lead in the points classification. Van der Breggen maintained her lead in the .
Stages in the mountains The seventh stage was the longest of the race at in length, taking the riders westwards to Salice Terme in Lombardy, with one climb at Pietragavina located from the finish. With to go, a large crash involved van der Breggen and Reusser, however they returned to the peloton and did not lose any time. On the descent from the Pietragavina climb, the breakaway included Longo Borghini, who aimed to gain time from her rivals. At the finish, the breakaway held off the chasing peloton with Célia Gery () beating Lucinda Brand () and Chantal Pegolo () in a sprint finish. Longo Borghini gained five seconds, but remained over 2 minutes behind van der Breggen.
The eighth stage was considered to be the queen stage of the race, originally planned to be from Rivoli to Sestriere in the Piedmont region. The stage would feature two climbs, the Colle delle Finestre ( in length with an average gradient of 9.2%, with the final of the climb on gravel roads) and the ascent to the finish at Sestriere.
On the climb to Colle delle Finestre, a group including Vollering, van der Breggen, Holmgren and Niedermaier slowly reduced the lead of the breakaway until they were at the front of the race. With of the climb remaining, organisers announced that the stage would be shortened for safety reasons, finishing around from the summit of the Colle delle Finestre. Organisers noted an "unstable sheet of ice that could fall onto the road" and that the top of the climb had previously been blocked by an avalanche. The stage would therefore be in length. As riders were made aware of the shortened route, Vollering attacked several times with only van der Breggen, Holmgren and Niedermaier able to follow with around to go. After a flurry of attacks, van der Breggen set the pace at the front approaching the finish – with Vollering attacking in the final to take the stage win ahead of Holmgren and Niedermaier. Van de Breggen maintained her lead in the , however bonus seconds meant that her lead over Vollering had been cut to 49 seconds.
The ninth stage of the race started and finished in Saluzzo in the Piedmont region. The course included three categorised climbs, followed by a "punchy finale" into the finish in Saluzzo.
Niedermaier attacked with around to go, followed by Longo Borghini and Fisher-Black. Niedermaier gained a substantial lead of over two minutes, thereby taking the virtual lead in the . On the Colletta di Brondello climb, Vollering attacked, distancing her rival van der Breggen and joining the group of Niedermaier, Longo Borghini and Fisher-Black with around remaining. Vollering had a lead over van der Breggen of over a minute, thereby taking the virtual lead. As the group of four pushed towards the finish, van der Breggen continued to lose time. Approaching the finish, Vollering knew overall victory had been secured, so let the other three riders fight for the win – with Longo Borghini beating a long sprint by Fisher-Black to take the stage win and secure 4th place overall. Van der Breggen finished the stage 2 minutes 23 seconds behind Vollering, and therefore fell to third overall behind Niedermaier.
Results In the final general classification (GC), Demi Vollering () won the Giro d'Italia Women for the first time, with an advantage over Antonia Niedermaier () of 30 seconds. With her win, Vollering became the second woman after Annemiek van Vleuten to win all three Grand Tours. Third overall was Anna van der Breggen (), who was 1 minutes 37 seconds behind Vollering.