The organizers of the Volta a Catalunya have announced the course for the 2014 edition of Spain's oldest stage race. With no time trial and two mountaintop finishes at the midpoint of the race, the race will again suit the climbers more than the allrounders.

The Volta a Catalunya is Spain's oldest stage race and the event has managed to survive the harsh economic climate that at one point threatened it with its extinction. In 2014 the race will again be an important part of the WorldTour calendar, taking its newly introduced March slot on the calendar that sees it being held in the week after Milan-Sanremo.

Today the organizers announced the route for the next edition of the race and it will be very similar to the one that allowed Daniel Martin (Garmin-Sharp) to beat riders like Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha), Michele Scarponi (then Lampre-Merida), Nairo Quintana (Movistar) and Bradley Wiggins (Sky) into the minor positions. For the fourth year in a row, the race will have no time trial, with two major mountaintop finishes set to decide the overall.

The first day of the race will be very similar to the opening day of last year's race as it again starts and finishes in Calella. The 165.7km will have three categorized climbs and could again include the Alt de Collsacreu close to the finish which last year saw the peloton split up on the descent before Gianni Meersman outsprinted a select group to take the win.

The 171.2km second stage ends in the cycling hotbed of Girona which is the home of many professional cyclists. The stage will include 2 categorized mountains and could be a hard one as it was the case when Michael Albasini won a sprint from a small group of favourites two years ago.

The third stage has three categorized climbs and offers the first summit finish of the event. The stage ends with the long, steady 12km climb of La Molina that was the scene of Santiago Blanco's stage win in the 2001 Vuelta a Espana.

The race's queen stage comes at its midpoint, with the 166,4km stage including 5 climbs and a mountaintop finish in Vallter 2000. Last year the third stage of the race ended on the same ascent but a fierce headwin put a dampener on the riders' aggression. Nairo Quintana made a late acceleration to take his first win of the season ahead of his team leader Alejandro Valverde and Rodriguez.

With the major stages having been completed, the GC will mostly have been decided and the sprinters could again come to the fore. The 222.2km 5th stage and the 163.9km 6th stage only have one categorized climb each but racing in Catalunya is never flat and a surprise could be in store.

Last year the race ended in spectacular fashion with a short, sharp stage on a circuit in Barcelona that included the famous Montjuic climb. Michele Scarponi rode an aggressive race to bridge the gap to a breakaway and rode himself up into 3rd place on GC. A similar stage will be repeated in this year's edition, with the race coming to an end on a short 120km route.

Last year Dan Martin won the race's queen stage and managed to withstand the attacks from Rodriguez to take a surprise win in his home area in Spain. Martin, Rodriguez, and Quintana have all confirmed their participation in this year's edition of the race while Valverde will forgo the race in favour of some of the cobbled races as he prepares for the pavés of the Tour de France.

Monday March 24: Stage one: Calella - Calella: 165 kilometres

Tuesday March 25: Stage two: Mataró - Girona 171.2 kilometres

Wednesday March 26: Stage three: Banyoles - La Molina (Alp) 162.9 kilometres

Thursday March 27: Stage four: Alp - Valter 2000-Setcases 166.4 kilometres

Friday March 28: Stage five: Llanars - Vall de Camprodon 222.2 kilometres

Saturday March 29: Stage six: El Vendrell - Vilanova i la Geltru 163.9 kilometres

Sunday March 30: Stage seven: Barcelona (Montjuic) - Barcelona (Montjuic) 120 kilometres.