La Vuelta 2019, Stage 12: Circuito de Navarra > Bilbao 05/09/2019 - Stage 12 - 171,4 km *Spoilers

La Vuelta 2019, Stage 12: Circuito de Navarra > Bilbao 05/09/2019 - Stage 12 - 171,4 km

The 12th stage of the Vuelta a España runs from the Circuito de Navarra near Los Arcos to Bilbao. The hilly route amounts to 171.4 kilometres. The finale serves a punchy climb and a flying descent into the largest city of the Basque Country.



The finish of this stage is a very scenic stage, but it's doubtful that the riders will be interested, given what the organizers have included for the final. The last time that Bilbao featured in the Spanish grand tour was in 2016. Jens Keukeleire sprinted to victory ahead of Maxime Bouet.
The last World Tour stage winner in Bilbao is............................................Primoz Roglic.
The Slovenian jumped clear in the 2017 Tour of the Basque Country with 3 kilometres to go. He held off the chasing peloton and won the race 3 seconds ahead of Michael Matthews.



Stage 12 of La Vuelta could turn out to be an opportunity for the likes of Roglic, who happens to be a fast descender. Following a race with a string of intermediate climbs – especially in the last 40 kilometres. The first 100 kilometres are nothing special. Predominantly flat and with only the Alto de Azázeta (4.9 kilometres at 3.9%) standing out.



The finale is something else though, as the race serves three steep climbs. The Alto de Urruztimendi (2.5 kilometres at 9.2%) is crested with 37 kilometres to go.



Next up, the Alto El Vivero (4.3 kilometres at 7.7%) is a test with the top 27 kilometres before the line.



However, the main action will be focused on the Alto de Arraiz. The 2.2 kilometres climb slopes at 12.2%, while the second part features sections well over 20%. The riders fly down a 7.6 kilometres descent into Bilbao’s city centre.



Favourites 12th stage 2019 Vuelta a España

The finale is similar to the Clásica San Sebastián. The route moves through Bilbao to tackle one last climb. Short but brutal. This is the terrain where World Champion Alejandro Valverde thrives. He won the Clásica twice and finished six times on the podium.
The 12th stage of La Vuelta basically comes down to the last 40 kilometres. First an uphill to stretch the legs and then, in order of appearance, Alto Urruztimendi, Alto El Vivero and Alto de Arraiz.

Favourites 12th stage 2019 Vuelta a España

*** Alejandro Valverde, Primoz Roglic
** Wout Poels, Miguel Angel Lopez, Tadej Pogacar
* Rafał Majka, Nairo Quintana, Óscar Rodríguez

Circuito de Navarra
1 stage of La Vuelta has departed from the Navarra Circuit.

The Navarra Circuit joined the list of La Vuelta’s circuits in 2017, along with Assen, Jerez and the Jarama track. The region’s fastest bends will mark the start of a stage which unlike two years ago will be a non-time trial linear stage. Almost 4,000 metres of asphalt that’ll give the pack a respite before they head up to the peaks of the Cantabrian Mountains.



Bilbao
42 stages of La Vuelta have had finales in Bilbao

345,110 inhabitants.
In 2011, La Vuelta returned to Euskadi-The Basque Country after years of absence, and it did so with a stage finish in Bilbao. Igor Antón was the winner on that occasion, and bathed in glory he retired from the professional peloton at the end of La Vuelta 18. Bilbao is the capital of the province of Bizkaia and the birthplace of cycling in our country. The riders and stage winners may change from one year to the next, but not so the scenes of thousands of cycling aficionados cheering the peloton on as it passes. A passion that has made the Basque Country the stuff of legend in the world of international cycling.

Bilbao is home to the Guggenheim Museum; a museum of modern and contemporary art designed by Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry.





Cuisine
Traditional Bilbao dishes are centered around products from the sea and the estuary, such as eels and cod. For the most part Bilbao shares its original gastronomy with that of the province of Biscay, including dishes such as bacalao al pil pil (cod fish cooked with olive oil, garlic and guindilla peppers),



bacalao a la vizcaína (salted cod with Biscayan sauce, mostly made of choricero peppers and onions), merluza en salsa verde (hake fish with green sauce), chipirones en su tinta (squid served with its own ink),
morros a la vizcaína (beef snouts with Biscayan sauce), revuelto de perretxikos (scrambled eggs with mushrooms)



and desserts such as canutillos de Bilbao (puff pastries filled with custard or chocolate),



Pantxineta (puff pastries filled with custard and almonds), rice cakes and bollos de mantequilla (butter buns).
In what refers to beverages, typical from the region is the txakoli, a white wine usually drunk as an apéritif. Biscayan txakoli (Bizkaiko Txakolina) is a protected Denominación de origen for the white wine produced in the province of Biscay and it is usually served in Bilbao.



Also typical are cider, patxaran (sloe-flavoured liqueur) and Rioja wine.