Cyclist
How much is the 2024 Vuelta a España prize money?
This year the organisers of the Vuelta a España will dish out €1,119,960 (approx £953,484) in prize money. That’s just less than half the prize pot at the Tour de France and, like the Tour, most is allocated to the general classification, with the final red jersey earning the winner €150,000, with nearly €60,000 for second and €30,000 for third.
Here’s how the Vuelta prize money is divvied out.
General classification
The most significant single chunk of prize money on offer will go to the overall winner, who’ll take home €150,000. This drops to €57,985 for second place, with the last step on the podium in Madrid getting a handy €30,000.
Behind them, the top ten are also relatively well remunerated. Interestingly, every rider between tenth and 20th in Madrid receives the same €3,800 lump sum.
Prizes for the final general classification
1st: €150,000
2nd: €57,985
3rd: €30,000
4th: €15,000
5th: €12,500
6th: €9,000
7th: €9,000
8th: €6,000
9th: €6,000
10th to 20th: €3,800
Total: €337,285
Individual stage wins
Each stage winner will bank a handy €11,000 for their efforts. Prizes for placings on each stage are distributed all the way down to the 20th finisher, giving even those well behind the leader a reason to put on a show for the fans. Once added together over the race’s 21 stages, a total of €606,060 will be handed out.
Prizes for each stage
1st: €11,000
2nd: €5,500
3rd: €2,700
4th: €1,500
5th: €1,100
6th: €900
7th: €900
8th: €650
9th: €650
10th to 20th: €360
Total per stage: €28,860
Points, mountains and young riders’ classifications
While there are points to be won for taking sprints or mountain summits, the leaders of the mountains and points jerseys receive a daily reward for heading their particular classifications. While each red jersey is worth €500 each day, the leader in the points competition gets only €100 for each day they hold on to the green jersey.
The same goes for the leader of the mountains competition. The best young rider, meanwhile, gets just €70 a day, barely enough to keep them stocked up on sweets and fizzy pop in the current climate.
The rider that claims each of the jerseys at the end of the race however will do a bit better. The winner of the mountains competition does best of all with €13,000 while the best young rider and the points competition winner both pocket €11,000.
Young rider and Points classification overall
1st: €11,000
2nd: €5,000
3rd: €2,000
Mountains classification overall
1st: €13,000
2nd: €6,600
3rd: €3,500
Climbs and sprints
On the way to Madrid, there will be numerous intermediate sprints and categorised climbs. Each sprint will see the first three riders over the line awarded €550, €180, and €95 respectively.
For the climbers, there are two ‘ESP’ climbs (or special category, comparable to the HC ‘hors catégorie’ classification at the Tour de France). First over gets €1,000 and second receives €520. First category climbs have €920 and €615 on offer to the leading riders, second category climbs offer €230 and €155, and third category €115 and €80.
Teams classification
The team classification for each stage is calculated by adding the times of the three leading riders from each squad. At the end of the day, the first place team on that stage gets €400, with the second placed squad receiving €200, while the third placed wins €100.
At the end of the three weeks of racing, the team finishing first receives €12,500, with prize money awarded down to the eighth placed outfit.
Team classification overall
1st: €12,500
2nd: €7,500
3rd: €5,500
4th: €4,300
5th: €3,200
6th: €2,200
7th: €1,100
8th: €1,100
Most aggressive rider
The rider deemed most combative each day wins the gold number for the following day along with €200. The rider considered the most aggressive throughout the entire race wins €3,000.
Distribution of funds
While you might expect a successful racer to come away with a good amount of cash, by tradition, any money won throughout the race is put in a kitty and divided between riders and backroom staff. Cycling is a team sport after all.
For more coverage on the Vuelta a España, visit our hub page.
The post How much is the 2024 Vuelta a España prize money? appeared first on Cyclist.