Stage 1: Lienz – Sillian

In recent years, East Tyrol has been a strong partner of the TOUR Transalp and offers everything needed for an exciting and attractive start to the race week. On the one hand, there are the two stage locations of Lienz and Sillian, both centres of cycling enthusiasm in this region of Austria. On the other hand, the Lienz Dolomites in the south, together with the Tauern and the Riesenfernegruppe in the north, form a magnificent backdrop for the opening stage, proving that the ‘Alp’ in the name is no empty promise that cyclists will have to wait long for. For this edition, we have decided to take the starting stage over the enchanting Staller Sattel again after 2023. To do this, we will head into one of the large valleys of East Tyrol, the Defereggen valley.

The Defereggen valley digs its way into the mountains from east to west and creates access to the Hohe Tauern, whose peaks on its northern flank stretch more than 3,000 metres into the sky. That is why a landscape experience of the honour category is on the programme right at the beginning. There is still a lot of nature to the right and left of the road, especially further back in the valley, when the valley head comes closer and closer. On the 35 kilometres from the valley entrance to the saddle, at an altitude of 2052 metres, there is plenty of time to gather impressions of the valley and the mountains around it. The size of this cut quickly proves to be an advantage, because the 1250 metres of this climb are so long that the road is discreetly restrained in its gradient percentages. At the Staller Sattel, the border to Italy is also reached and on a narrow, winding road, the route first descends to the biathlon stadium in Antholz, which will also host the Olympic biathlon competitions in 2026. Now the ride becomes brisker, the road wider - it now leads rather straight out into the Pustertal, to Olang at the foot of the Kronplatz. Only now does the Transalp enter familiar terrain again. Side roads with little traffic now take the participants away from the main traffic artery over a hill to Welsberg and briefly on the cycle path to Niederdorf. Only now does the route return to the wide state road, flat via Toblach and Innichen back to the border. Back in Austria, there are now only 4 kilometres left to complete the starting stage in Sillian.