It is a route steeped in tradition that the Sibiu Tour 2026 will follow. First held in 2011, the short Romanian stage race in the .1 category (the only one in the country to boast such a classification) will take place again this year in the first decade of July, from Saturday, July 4 to Tuesday, July 7, and for the eighth time in its history will once again feature the formula of two half-stages within the same race day.

In total, therefore, the riders at the start will be called upon to face five stages and a total distance of 609.9 kilometers, a figure that makes the sixteenth edition of the Romanian race the sixth longest ever held in its history. More than the kilometers, however (the longest stage, the final one, measures 181), it will be the climbs and elevation gain proposed in this year's route that will prove decisive in determining the final yellow jersey, with proportions that will be quite substantial over a couple of days.

The reference is to the second and third stages when the peloton will be forced to tackle 2,380 and 2,583 meters of elevation gain respectively, climbing to the summits of Păltiniș (9.8 km at 6.9%) and Bâlea Lac (23.5 km at 6%), steep climbs that have become true symbols of the Sibiu Tour thanks to the race's visits to them every year since the first edition.

It is here that, at the end of two stages of 157 kilometers each with starts and finishes in Sibiu, the standings will almost certainly take on a definitive shape, since in the other days, the altimetric conformation of the stages should not generate particularly significant time gaps on paper. In the first half-stage (with start and finish in Sibiu just like the last one), the greatest difficulty will be represented by the Calugaru climb (2.5 km at 5.9%) to be repeated three times, but with the final passage 29 kilometers from the finish, the sprinters should have an easy time battling it out for victory.

For specialists of the stopwatch or in any case for very explosive riders, it will instead be the second half-stage of the first day, an individual time trial of just 3.2 kilometers that is completely flat, but where, among the various curves and semi-curves (fifteen in total) and the "U" turn after two thousand meters, one must pay close attention to handling the bike and be constantly ready to increase the pace.

To close matters, finally, will be a stage (the fourth) that, while having nothing to do with the previous two in terms of difficulty, will nonetheless propose an insidious and potentially quite spectacular finale due to the final climb, about ten kilometers from the finish, which could give wings to some brave riders and, in terms of the overall classification, prove perfect for settling any remaining accounts.

If, on the other hand, calm were to prevail, then it is reasonable to think that this last stage too will have a sprint finish favorable to the fast men, undoubtedly pleased to reclaim the spotlight for the final act of a race that, won in 2025 by Matthew Riccitello (absent this year as he is competing in the Tour de France) ahead of David De La Cruz and Odd Christian Eiking, has everything to prove itself sparkling and decidedly thrilling once again.

THE STAGES

Stage 1a: Sibiu-Sibiu (110.5 km)

Stage 1b: (Individual Time Trial): Sibiu-Sibiu (3.2 km)

Stage 2: Sibiu-Păltiniș Arena (157.8 km)

Stage 3: Sibiu-Bâlea Lac (157.4 km)

Stage 4: Sibiu-Sibiu (181.0 km)