Date: Saturday March 7, 2026
Start: Siena, Tuscany
Finish: Siena, Tuscany
Total distance: 213km and 136km
Defending champions: Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Demi Vollering (FDJ-Suez)
Strade Bianche gained prestige quickly when the men's race began in 2007, attracting some of the world’s best cyclists to the white roads of Tuscany. In 2017, the one-day race was awarded UCI WorldTour status and has now become a must-do Classics race in many of the pro's calendars.
Strade Bianche translates to “white roads” and this is a defining feature of the race, with one-third of the overall route being gravel. The route is split into sections, with 15 sections raced on the dirt roads of Tuscany. Testing the rider's bike handling and climbing abilities, the route does not just feature white roads but also steep climbs and winding descents over 200-plus-kilometres.
Two male riders have won the race three times: Fabian Cancellara winning in 2008, 2012, and 2016 and the perennial winner Tadej Pogačar (2022, 2024, 2025). The only other rider who has come close to the record is Michał Kwiatkowski, who has won the race twice in 2014 and 2017. Other notable champions include Philippe Gilbert, Zdeněk Štybar, Tiesj Benoot, Julian Alaphilippe, Wout van Aert, Mathieu van der Poel, and Tom Pidcock.
Image by Getty
Strade Bianche men’s teams:
EF Education-EasyPost
Alpecin-Deceuninck
Arkéa-B&B Hotels
XDS Astana
Bahrain-Victorious
Cofidis
Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale
Groupama-FDJ
Ineos Grenadiers
Intermarché-Wanty
Lidl-Trek
Movistar
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgroge
Soudal–Quick-Step
Picnic PostNL
Jayco AlUla
Visma-Lease a Bike
UAE Team Emirates-XRG
Israel-Premier Tech
Uno-X Mobility
Lotto
Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team
Strade Bianche men’s route:
Race profile sourced via the Strade Bianche website
The 2026 edition of the one-day race will begin near Fortezza Medicea and finish in Siena, concluding in Piazza del Campo, following the famous Santa Caterina climb. Over the 213km-long route, there are 16 gravel or “white roads” in total, spanning 81.7km. Many of them feature punchy climbs and twisty roads, an element which makes Strade Bianche such a captivating race to watch.
The first gravel section is 4.4km and is mainly downhill, but the second gravel section comes quickly after and provides more of a challenge, with a 10% climb making up the majority of the section. La Piana – one of the race’s classic gravel sections which has featured in the race since the first edition – is the fourth sector of gravel for the riders to contend with before they return back to the tarmac for the Montalcina climb – a 4km ascent at an average gradient of 5%. The longest gravel section follows at 11.9km, then with only one kilometre between, the sixth gravel section. Both are hard, hilly, and very punchy, with many challenging twists, climbs, and descents.
Sections seven, eight and nine continue to test the legs of the riders. The latter, especially, as the 11.5km-long section is mostly uphill and features major ascents, especially near Monte Sante Marie. After they’ve tackled section nine, the gravel parts of the race become considerably shorter as the peloton heads into Vico d’Arbia, where they enter the final 30km circuit.
Section 11 features the 15% Colle Pinzuto climb and section 12, Le Tolfe, also features a punchy 18% climb. Following these two demanding sections, the route takes on the Strada del Castagno for the first time in the race’s history. Three more gravel sections remain – Montechiara, Colle Pinzuto and Le Tolfe – before the race finally heads to the finale in Siena. The only remaining challenge is the Santa Canterina climb, which features 16% gradients at its maximum. With just 70 metres to go, the route enters the Piazza del Campo and the final 30 metres descend at a gradient of 7% to the finish line, crowing the 2025 winner.
Strade Bianche Donne:
Following the success of the men’s race, the women's peloton first raced the Strade Bianche Donne in 2015, on the same day as the men. Since then, it has become one of the Women’s WorldTour must-do races, and having this Classics title on your palmarès is a monumental achievement, meaning it attracts a stellar line-up of female cyclists to the start line.
While it is shorter in distance than the men’s race, the race is no easier and still contains 12 sections of gravel and a number of brutal climbs, including the 16% climb to the finish line along Via Santa Caterina.
British rider Lizzie Deignan (née Armitstead) won the inaugural Strade Bianche Donne in 2016 while wearing the rainbow stripes as the women's world champion. The following year, Elisa Longo Borghini won the race, becoming the first-ever Italian to win the Strade Bianche in both the men’s and women’s races. Adding themselves onto the winning list since are Anna van der Breggen, Annemiek van Vleuten, Chantel van den Broek-Blaak, Lotte Kopecky, and Demi Vollering.
Last year Vollering became a two-time winner, joining the now-retired Van Vleuten who won in 2019 and 2020, and Kopecky who won in 2022 and 2024. No rider is yet to win the women’s race three times so it could be a chance for Vollering or Kopecky to achieve this feat.
Image by SWpix.com
Strade Bianche Donne teams:
CERATIZIT Pro Cycling Team
FDJ-Suez
Lidl-Trek
Laboral Kutxa-Fundación Euskadi
Cofidis
Canyon//SRAM-zondacrytpo
Movistar
Human Powered Health
EF Education-Oatly
Visma-Lease a Bike
SD Worx-Protime
Liv AlUla Jayco
VolkerWessels Women’s Pro Cycling Team
AG Insurance-Soudal Team
Strade Bianche Donne route:
Race profile sourced via the Strade Bianche website
The women’s race is similar to the men’s with the twisting, gravel roads making up a large proportion of the race. For the women, they will tackle 13 of the race’s white roads, spanning a total of 50.3km. Starting in Fortezza Madicea, the riders will enter their first gravel section after 14.2km of racing, followed by section two, which features a 10% climb. Over the 136km-long route, section six is the longest section of gravel, standing at 9.4km. This section is continually undulating and finishes with a twisting climb that leads back to the smooth tarmac.
After the sixth section, the white roads become much smaller with section 11 (3.3km) being the longest section left of the race. After the second crossing of Le Tolfe (section nine and 13), the women’s peloton will face the same gruelling Santa Caterina climb to Piazza del Campo, where the race ends.
