The mountains classification in the Vuelta a España is a secondary classification in the

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; ) is an annual stage race, multi-stage bicycle racing, bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Ital ...

. For this classification, points are given to the cyclists who cross the mountain peaks first. The classification was established in 1935, when it was won by Italian

Edoardo Molinar Edoardo Molinar (31 August 1907 in Rocca Canavese, Italy – 22 September 1994 in Rocca Canavese, Italy) was an Italian cyclist. He was a professional cyclist in 1931–1948 (1950), except for Second World War's years. He was a winner of P ...

, and until 2005 the leader in the mountain classification wore a green jersey. In 2006, it became an orange jersey, and in 2010 it became white with blue dots. Spaniard José Luis Laguía has won this classification a record five times, including three consecutive. Other cyclists who have won this ranking for three consecutive times were

Antonio Karmany Antonio Karmany Mestres (born 21 January 1934) is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. Major Results ;1957 :1st, Stage 6, Vuelta a Levante ;1958 :1st, Gran Premio de Primavera ;1959 :1st, Stages 4a & 6, Volta a Catalunya :1st, St ...

, Julio Jiménez,

José María Jiménez Jose María Jiménez Sastre (6 February 1971 – 6 December 2003) was a Spanish professional road bicycle racer. During his career he excelled as a climbing specialist, climber, winning numerous mountain stages. His nickname was ''El Chava ...

, all Spaniards. Overall, the Spaniards have dominated this classification by 47 out of 68 times. In 2010,

David Moncoutié David Moncoutié (born 30 April 1975) is a retired French professional road racing cyclist, who rode with the French team , for his entire professional career. He was a climbing specialist, climber, and won his first professional race in a mounta ...

considered retirement, but remained a professional cyclist to try to win his third consecutive mountains classification. In 2011, he became the first rider ever to win this award in four consecutive years.

Jersey

As of 2010, the leader of the mountains classification is awarded a white jersey with blue dots. The mountains jersey is third in the rankings of jerseys, behind the jersey for the

general classification The general classification (or the GC) in road bicycle racing is the category that tracks overall times for riders in multi-stage races. Each stage will have a stage winner, but the overall winner in the GC is the rider who has the fastest cumulati ...

and

points classification in the Vuelta a España The points classification in the Vuelta a España is a secondary classification in the Vuelta a España, in which the cyclists are ranked in a points classification, based on the finish of each rider every stage. History For the first time, a poi ...

but before the combination classification; this means that if a cyclists leads both the general classification and the mountains classification, he wears the jersey for the general classification, and the mountains jersey is passed on to the second cyclist in that ranking.

Rules

The organisation of the Vuelta designates which climbs are given points, and in which category they fall. As of 2022, there are 6 categories: most points are scored on the Top

Alberto Fernández Alberto Ángel Fernández (; born 2 April 1959) is an Argentine politician, lawyer, and academic who served as President of Argentina from 2019 to 2023. He was also the Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers from 2003 to 2008. His tenure as Cabin ...

, the highest point of the Vuelta. If two or more cyclists have the same number of points, the cyclist who was first on the 'Top Alberto Fernandez' gets the higher ranking. If that does not solve the problem, the cyclists with the most high climb finishes wins gets the higher ranking. If that does not solve it, the cyclists with the most first category wins, and so on. If after the third category there is still a tie, the order in the general classification is used.

List of winners

Multiple winners

Days in leader's jersey

''after the end of

2024 Vuelta a España The 2024 Vuelta a España was a three-week cycling race that took place in Portugal and Spain between 17 August and 8 September. It was the 79th edition of the Vuelta a España and the third and final grand tour of the 2024 men's road cycling se ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vuelta A Espana Mountains Classification

Mountains Classification The King of the Mountains (KoM) is an award given to the best climbing specialist in a men's cycling road race; in women's cycle racing, Queen of the Mountains (QoM) is used. While the title may be given to the rider who achieves the highest p ...

Cycling jerseys Spanish sports trophies and awards