The organizers of the Vuelta al Pais Vasco have finalized the route for the 2014 edition of the race. As usual, the Basque tour will cover 6 stages and will contain its tradition queen stage with the finish on the Arrate climb and a time trial on the final day.

The organizers of the traditional warm-up stage race for the Ardennes classics, the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, have designed the course for the 2014 edition of the Basque race. As usual, the race shapes up to be a very mountainous one, with the race covering several hard climbs in the hilly province.

Usually held in the week between the Tour of Flanders and the Paris-Roubaix, the race offers the Ardennes contenders a perfect opportunity to fine-tune their condition while the heavier riders battle it out on the cobbles in Northern Europe. As usual, the race will cover 6 stages, starting on the Monday after Flanders and finishing on the Saturday before Roubaix. The race is preceded by the GP Miguel Indurain and followed by the Klasika Primavera to make a 8-day block of Basque racing in a 9-day period.

The 2014 race will kick off in Ordizia with a very hilly stage that ends in the same town. In a 150-155km route, the stage is set to include 10-12 climbs that make it a perfect test for the Ardennes classics. It won't have the same finish as the one-day race Klasika di Ordizia and could include a "wall" that has still not been announced.

The second stage will be another hilly one, bringing the riders from Ordizia to Urdazabi-Urdax. The third stage will offer a rare opportunity for the sprinters as it will have the traditional finish in Vitoria-Gasteiz where Daryl Impey has won stages in both 2012 and 2013.

As usual, the fourth stage will be the traditional queen stage that ends 1km after the top of the Arrate climb. The stage was formerly the queen stage of the Euskal Bizikleta stage race but when the two races combined forces, it took over the role of decider in the biggest Basque stage race. Alberto Contador won when it was first included in 2009 but the stage has been dominated by Samuel Sanchez who won in 2010, 2011 and 2012. This year he was beaten when eventual winner Nairo Quintana took his only stage win in the race.

The 5th stage brings the riders from Eibar to Markina-Xemein where the race will end one day later with a 25km time trial. While the exact routes haven't been confirmed, it would be in line with tradition if the race against the clock is a hilly affair with several steep climbs and technical descent.

The 2013 edition of the race was won by Quintana who rode an outstanding time trial to deny Richie Porte the overall win. Another Sky rider, Sergio Henao, who had led the race for several days, rounded out the podium.

Course for the 2014 Vuelta al Pais Vasco:

Stage 1: Ordizia - OrdiziaS

Stage 2: Ordizia - Urdazabi-Urdax
Stage 3: Igantzi - Vitoria-Gasteiz
Stage 4: Vitoria-Gasteiz - Eibar (Arrate)
Stage 5: Eibar - Markina-Xemein
Stage 6: Markina-Xemein ITT