PLAYGROUND OF THE PROS

Move aside Majorca and the French Alps, Andorra is now the must-go-to place for all cyclists craving mountain challenges

- Chris Marshall-Bell

Cycling is going through a generational change. Elite-level racing is being dominated by young riders belying their age, and comparatively minimal experience and many of them are choosing to live in a country where few had ever even been just a decade ago: the Principality of Andorra.

Sandwiched between France and Spain in the magnificent Pyrenees, the country – at 468 square kilometres, just marginally bigger than the Isle of Wight – packs in 21 cols and mountain passes, ranging from 6.1km long to 35km.

Its mountainous terrain, allied to its low taxes and reasonably priced day to-day living, make Andorra an obvious haven for pros. “It’s now the cyclist’s home of choice,” declares Koen de Kort (Trek-Segafredo), a professional of 20 seasons. “Previously, the riders on big contracts were in Monaco, and the rest in Girona, that’s how the pros were divided. But people have realised it’s more beneficial to live in Andorra from a riding and financial point of view.”

The numbers of amateurs making the trip to the principality are rising too. “I’ve seen a massive influx of pros but also tourists,” Canadian ex-pro Svein Tuft tells us.

Cycling Weekly went to see why so many professionals – including Britain’s Tom Pidcock and Tao Geoghegan Hart – joined the 78,000 residents that call the Catalan-speaking country home, and within just one ride we were ready to declare it the best place in the world to ride if you love climbing.

With the help of Tuft, De Kort and Jack Haig of Bahrain Victorious, we list the five climbs in the country everyone should do when borders finally reopen.

Coll de la Gallina (via Fontaneda)