2026 Tour de Pologne | Marco Brenner wins GC and his first WorldTour race
CyclingSunday, 09 August 2026 at 18:22
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Follow us on GoogleThe Tour de France has only just finished, but the next WorldTour races are already upon us. After Saturday’s Clásica San Sebastián, the Tour of Poland begins on Monday, Aug. 3. A successor to Brandon McNulty must be found, and IDL Pro Cycling looks ahead to the seven-day stage race.
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The Tour of Poland occupies a place on the calendar between the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España, which helps explain the varied collection of riders on its list of winners. On one side, there are proven stage racers such as Jonas Vingegaard, João Almeida and Remco Evenepoel. On the other, classics specialists including Matej Mohorič and Michał Kwiatkowski have also won the race.
Last season, the victory went to UAE Emirates-XRG’s Brandon McNulty. The American rode the Tour de France in July and will therefore not return to Poland in 2026.
Recent winners of the Tour de Pologne
2025 Brandon McNulty
2024 Jonas Vingegaard
2023 Matej Mohorič
2022 Ethan Hayter
2021 João Almeida
2020 Remco Evenepoel
2019 Pavel Sivakov
2018 Michał Kwiatkowski
2017 Dylan Teuns
2016 Tim Wellens
2024 Jonas Vingegaard
2023 Matej Mohorič
2022 Ethan Hayter
2021 João Almeida
2020 Remco Evenepoel
2019 Pavel Sivakov
2018 Michał Kwiatkowski
2017 Dylan Teuns
2016 Tim Wellens
2026 Tour de Pologne - route, stage favorites, and start time
Stage 1, Monday, August 3: Gdynia – Koszalin (234 km)
On paper, the first stage of the Tour of Poland looked like it would favor the fast riders, although a 1.5-kilometer climb with a 4.1 percent gradient in the final stretch could still throw a wrench in the works. Normally, the sprinters in the field—or at least some of them—would have been strong enough to survive that. Jonathan Milan delivered and won.
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Stage 2, Tuesday, August 4: Miedzyzdroje – Szczecin (150.8 km)
On day two, we finished at 1 meter above sea level, and along the way we didn’t go much higher than 54 meters: this, too, was a perfect opportunity for the fast riders in the field. Read: Jonathan Milan.
Winner
Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek)
Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek)
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Stage 3, Wednesday, August 5: Gorzów Wielkopolski – Zielona Góra (193.5 km)
It’s no surprise that many teams with a strong sprinter headed to this Tour of Poland. When we saw the route for Day 3, we thought it would end in a bunch sprint for the third time in a row—and that’s exactly what happened.
Winner
Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek)
Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek)
Stage 4, Thursday, August 6: Zagan - Karpacz (175.5 km)
On day four, we finish in Karpacz: a well-known finish in the Tour of Poland. It was raining in the Karpacz region, which led to a massive crash in the run-up to the final climb, forcing the race to be temporarily halted. After the riders were sent off again, Visma | Lease a Bike took the initiative with a series of attacks. It paid off, as Bart Lemmen secured in phenomenal fashion his first professional victory.
Stage 5, Friday, August 7: Opole – Kocierz (218.5 km)
What an arrival in Poland! The final climb was truly grueling. Jan Christen accelerated early, but seemed to have overreached himself. Still, he managed to beat Marco Brenner in a two-man sprint. Bart Lemmen struggled, but retained the lead in the general classification.
Stage 6, Saturday, August 8: Bukovina – Bukovina (125.6 km)
The penultimate stage is a traditional decider in the Tour of Poland, taking place in and around Bukovina. In the queen stage, Visma | Lease a Bike once again came out on top: following Bart Lemmen, Louis Barré also claimed his first professional victory. However, the team narrowly lost the overall lead to Christian Scaroni of XDS-Astana.
Read also
Stage 7, Sunday, August 9: Wieliczka - Wieliczka (12.4 km, time trial)
The Tour of Poland concluded with a 12.7-kilometer individual time trial, which was won by Stefan Küng of Tudor. The battle for the overall classification remained incredibly close, with many riders bunched together. Marco Brenner capped off Tudor’s success by winning the overall classification, while Bart Lemmen just missed the podium.
David Bavin-HobbsChief Editor
David has been working in the sports & cycling industry for 16 years. Covering racing, business and technology, he has worked in communications for cycling companies, teams, and as a journalist. His proudest achievement is winning the first bike race he ever entered. He hasn't won a race since.
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Latest Comments
- - Massive respect for how he frames the pressure. You can see the culture shift: from chasing UCI points to executing for a leader who actually circles back with credit. That Romandie example says a lot about Pogacar and UAE’s environment—calm, ruthless, effective. Vamos Vuelta.breakawaybikerd18-08-2026
- - So wait, he’s already done the Tour twice but never had a WorldTour win on the team until this year? How does that work—do riders not get “wins” if they’re helping a leader? Confusing bit for me.raceready718-08-2026
- - Interesting read, but the piece glosses over his actual role in Spain. Is he on bottle duty through the flats or earmarked for high-mountain pacing? Also, calling every UAE GT roster “Tour-level” feels a bit hyperbolic—stacked, yes, but the Vuelta is different terrain and rhythm.samanthak18-08-2026
- - Love this move for Vermaerke. He was rock solid at DSM/Picnic PostNL, but UAE-XRG is the perfect environment to sharpen his climbing and positioning. If he nails his Vuelta domestique duties for Pogi, he’s on the fast track to a Tour roster spot next year.gearguru3318-08-2026
- - Qué tragedia. Muito respeito para a família. The investigator’s timeline helps, but still feels like a systemic safety failure on open-road races during descents.jeremya16-08-2026
- - Can someone explain what the broom wagon actually signifies? If it hadn’t passed, why was a civilian car allowed on course at all? I’m confused how those protocols work when riders are scattered.tourdeforce916-08-2026
- - Sorry, but this reads a bit like passing the buck. If signage was the only control at that junction, that’s not enough. A single marshal could have prevented this. Operational plan might’ve been followed, but was it adequate?gearguru3316-08-2026
- - If the GNR says it’s “humanly impossible” to cover every access point, shouldn’t organisers rethink neutral service positioning or add mobile motos for gaps on fast descents? This was a secondary access, but speed on that downhill made it primary in practice.jennifer1916-08-2026
- - Heartbreaking. The detail about the broom wagon not yet passing is crucial—explains why Finlay thought the road was still sealed. Condolences to his family and team. RIP Fin.robert6516-08-2026
- - Tears on the front row for NSN… goosebumps. Chapeau to the bunch for letting them lead the pace. Esto es el verdadero espíritu del ciclismo.julien15-08-2026
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