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Top Cyclists Kick off 2016 Season in Mallorca

Nine WorldTour teams are represented at the Challenge Mallorca

featured in News & reviews Author Pam Williamson, Mallorca Editor Updated

Tomorrow will see the first stage of four in the gruelling Challenge Mallorca cycle race. This year the race will be even more special as it is the 25th anniversary of the event.

Mallorca has long been a winter training ground for cyclists, especially those who compete at international level. Having a mild climate, great roads, good climbs and mountainous areas and generally just being very beautiful! Team Sky have made it their winter home for several years now and it seems that this trend is beginning to catch on.

Last years WorldTour winner, Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) kicks off his season tomorrow. 2015 saw him stand on the podium in the Tour de France for the first time, he also won the Liège-Bastogne-Liège and La Flèche Wallonne for the third time, to top the WorldTour rankings. He triumphed in the Serra de Tramuntana stage of the Challenge Mallorca last year and has taken four other stages going back to 2004.

Michal Kwiatkowski, the 2014 World Champion, will be making his début for Team Sky. Whilst the undisputed leader of the Trek-Segafredo team, Fabian Cancellara, will begin his farewell tour. 2016 is set to be his last year in competitive cycling...but it may also be his best!

German sprinting powerhouse Andre Greipel will also be competing in Mallorca for his first race of the season. Also known as the Green Gorilla due to his immense power, speed, sprinting prowess and also the number of stage wins that he has had in the Tour de France, Greipel will be out to thrill spectators, and to win!

So if this inspires you to get 'on yer bike' and try some of these stages for yourself (albeit in slightly longer time...) then take a look at our Cycling Routes in Mallorca.