Tour of Spain to start from Netherlands in 2020

Madrid - The 2020 Tour of Spain will start in Utrecht and the first three stages will take place in the Netherlands, organisers and Dutch officials announced on Wednesday.

"The team presentation, the start with a team time trial and the finish of the second stage are to be held in Utrecht in August," the Vuelta's official website said.

"The second stage will start in 's-Hertogenbosch, while the complete third stage will cover the Province of Noord-Brabant, both starting and finishing in Breda."

Utrecht will become the first city to host stages for the three major tours.

The 2015 Tour de France started in the city and the second stage of the 2010 Giro d'Italia ended there.

Organisers have not yet revealed all the details of the route for 2019, but they have confirmed that the race will begin in Spain.

The Vuelta has only started abroad three times - in Lisbon in 1987, in Assen in the Netherlands in 2009, and in Nimes, France, in 2017.