The organisers of the Volta a Catalunya announced late on Wednesday that Thursday's stage 4 to Vallter, which was due to finish at 2,110 metres in elevation, will be cut short due to high winds.
"Due to the activation of a Level 3 VENCAT (sic) warning, with wind gusts of up to 90 km/h forecast at the summit of Vallter, the Volta a Catalunya has been forced to shorten the route of its 4th stage, scheduled for Thursday 26 March.
"The stage, starting from Mataró, will finish in the town of Camprodon, shortening the final climb to the resort."
Camprodon comes 150 kilometres into the planned 172.8-kilometre stage and is at the base of the Vallter climb, well before the steeper final 13 kilometres.
The warning comes from Catalonia's Civil Protection Agency's special emergency plan for high winds, VENTCAT.
The VENTCAT alert reads, "Looking ahead to Thursday, early in the morning, the entire Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees area will be added to the wind warning, as well as the Pla de l’Estany and the Gironès. As the day progresses, the episode will be restricted to the Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees, especially in the high altitudes of Ripollès, Pallars Sobirà and Alta Ribagorça, where more than 90 km/h could occur. The wind will also remain in the Alt and Baix Empordà, where the north wind will strengthen throughout Thursday."
The agency also warns, "As for outdoor leisure activities, it is necessary to avoid doing them in wooded areas and on the coast and postpone them as far as possible if their safety cannot be guaranteed."
A similar scenario happened in 2025 when the queen stage of the Volta a Catalunya was replaced with a flat 73-kilometre stage. Once underway, organisers further cut the stage to just 28 kilometres. Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) won with a late attack.
French champion Dorian Godon (Ineos Grenadiers) leads the Volta a Catalunya after winning stages 1 and 3, and holds an 11-second lead on Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), who crashed late in stage 3 on Wednesday. Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5) is third at 16 seconds, while favourite Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) is fourth at 18 seconds.
The toughest stage of the 2026 Volta a Catalunya route comes on Friday with a high altitude finish on the Coll de Pal. There is a second summit finish on Saturday at Queralt before the Barcelona circuit around the Castell de Montjuïc concludes the race on Sunday.
