Why did Remco Evenepoel, Peter Sagan and Fernando Gaviria decide to start season at Vuelta a San Juan in Argentina?

“Where it all begins” proudly state the Vuelta a San Juan promotional posters. This slogan isn’t a lie. It is on these steep roads, bathed in the Argentinian summer sun that some teams officially launch their season. These teams are well aware that San Juan offers unparalleled competition conditions: favourable weather and an extremely varied and selective course, which is perfect for evaluating their leaders’ form.

Since its first edition, in 1982, the Vuelta a San Juan has come a long way to the point that it has been an unmissable event at the start of the year. This is all the more true since, surfing on the still-growing popularity of this event, the organisers have now added a women’s, junior’s and inclusive race to the men’s.

And after two years on hiatus, due to Covid-19, the competition has finally made its return to the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) calendar. But over its break it didn’t lose any of its attraction thanks to the always enthusiastic and present local supporters who make San Juan the Argentinian cycling capital. The quality of the starting line-up is also a testament to this.

Seven World Teams, the elite of the cycling world, have landed in this region in the north of Argentina: Astana, Team DSM, Bora-Hansgrohe, Trek-Segafredo, Ineos Grenadiers, Soudal Quick-Step and Movistar. This line-up is also enhanced by the presence of extremely competitive Pro Teams such as TotalEnergies Israel Premier-Tech. In addition, other continental teams from Argentina, Colombia and Panama will compete.

It won’t be easy as once again the route is steep. This 39th edition highlights Argentina’s iconic scenery as well as spectacular climbs. In the fourth stage the team will take on the legendary Route 40 (from the north to the south) before finishing in Barreal, one of the prettiest towns in San Juan province. Two days later, and after a rest day, the cyclists will take on the fifth stage on Friday, 27 January, which is perhaps the most difficult stage in this edition.

On the programme is 173.7 kilometres and the climb of the formidable Alto de Colorado whose summit stands at 2565 metres. Whoever can overcome it will have a good shot at winning. Remco Evenepoel, the most recent title winner in 2020, and the new star of international cycling, is the favourite.

There’s a strong link between the Belgian prodigy (who will turn 23 on 25 January during the competition) and the Vuelta a San Juan: the Soudal Quick-Step cyclist entered his first professional race here in 2019. Since then Remco has met all expectations, with a notably extraordinary 2022 season with major success in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, La Vuelta and the World Championship.

But Evenepoel and Soudal Quick-Step will not have an easy time across the grand landscapes of this race, which is considered to be the most important in all of South America. Movistar also has its own gem: Fernando Gaviria. The Colombian sprinter, 28, has already won on the Vuelta a San Juan routes 8 times and doesn’t plan on stopping there.

There will also be other headliners on the starting line, including the Italian Filippo Ganna, who came second to Evenepoel in 2020, and the Slovakian legend Peter Sagan, who is now the leader of the French team TotalEnergies. In addition to Ganna, another rider from the Ineos Grenadier team will be interesting to watch: Egan Bernal. After being seriously injured when he crashed into a bus during training, the Colombian 2019 Tour de France winner miraculously survived. For him the Vuelta a San Juan is where everything begins (again)…