Mike O'Connor
Australia’s Brady Gilmore has claimed a landmark victory on the final stage of the Volta a Catalunya 2026, sprinting to his first WorldTour win on the famous Montjuïc circuit in Barcelona.
The NSN Cycling rider timed his effort to perfection in a reduced bunch sprint, coming off the wheel of Dorian Godon in the closing metres to edge the Frenchman on the line.
The traditional final stage once again delivered an aggressive race, with seven ascents of Montjuïc encouraging attacks throughout. Despite the intent from general classification contenders, no move was able to gain decisive separation, and a select group of 34 riders rolled into the finale together.
Gilmore, however, was exactly where he needed to be.
Positioned on Godon’s wheel on the fast descent into the finish, the Kalgoorlie-born rider launched late and held on in a tight bike throw to secure the biggest win of his career.
“Such an awesome day – it’s so awesome to win with Andrés in the car,” Gilmore said, referring to the Barcelona football great Andrés Iniesta, who watched the win from the sidelines.
“I can’t thank the boys enough for putting me in the position to do this,” continued Gilmore.
“It’s my first WorldTour win… I found something special in the legs for today.”
The victory continues a rapid rise for the young sprinter, who has built momentum over the past 12 months with consistent results across multiple continents.
In 2025, Gilmore announced himself with overall victory at the Tour de Taiwan, adding stage wins at the Tour du Rwanda and Volta a Portugal, along with general classification success at the Circuit des Ardennes.
Crucially, he said the lessons learned earlier in the week played a role in converting the opportunity in Barcelona, after initially overextending himself when given leadership responsibility.
“The first day was probably more suited to me, but it was my first time being a leader… I used too much energy,” he said.
“I applied everything I learned from that into today and executed it perfectly.”
NSN Cycling sport director Oscar Guerrero said the team had identified the stage as a key opportunity and committed fully to the plan.
“We knew we would have an opportunity today, which is why we chased the breakaway,” Guerrero said.
“The only message to Brady was to take the wheel of Godon… we told him that would take him to 150 metres to go.”
The final stage on Montjuïc produced an aggressive but ultimately controlled race, with repeated attacks on the climbs failing to stick and a reduced bunch coming together for the finish. In the end, it came down to Gilmore’s sprint.
Behind him, Jonas Vingegaard stayed protected in the front group to safely secure overall victory, with no changes to the general classification.
Mike O’Connor – A keen cyclist, runner and photographer, Mike O’Connor is the Editor of Bicycling Australia. He manages the BA website and social media, and loves promoting the achievements of Australian cyclists.
