The 2023 Tour de Alps will once again follow a mountainous route between Austria and northern Italy.

The race, which takes place in late April, appears to be the perfect preparation for the Giro d'Italia, with at least a dozen WorldTour teams on the start list. If Lemko Evenpoel has the Giro d'Italia as his goal, he will probably head to the Tour of the Alps for the final race and to scout the Italian roads.

The 2023 Tour of the Alps will take place between Monday, April 17 and Friday, April 21.

At a presentation of the 46th edition in Milan on Friday, organizers announced five stages: the 2023 edition will start in the Alpbachtal in the Austrian Tyrol and head south through two mountain finishes, Lennon, Vallagallina, Val di Fiemme

The stage will finish in Brunico.

Although the stages are relatively short, there are many climbs and spectacular mountain roads to stimulate aggressive racing. All five stages include at least 2,500 meters of climbing, with stage 4 reaching 3,610 meters in just 152 km of racing.

Race director Maurizio Evangelista explains, "We think that is the secret of our success. [In the last few years, cycling and the riders have changed, and they are attacking, taking all kinds of risks to win. We have changed our races to match their aggressive racing style"

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In the 2022 Tour of the Alps, Romain Bardet (Team DSM) snatched the overall win from Pero Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious). Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ), who had not won in three years, won the epic final mountain stage around Lienz in the rain.

In 2023, the opening 127.5 km stage from Rattenberg to Alpbach awaited a short but steep climb to Brandenberg and Kerschbaumer Sattel followed by an uphill finish.

Stage 2 heads south on Tuesday, starting in Lennon and crossing the Passo Brennero before tackling a series of climbs on Barbiano and Monte di Mezzo in the last 1km of the 165.2km stage.

Stage 3 takes the riders from Lennon to Brentonico San Valentino in Italy's Trentino region, where the true overall battle will be revealed as they finish at the top of Passo San Valentino, a 15.5km, 7.5% climb.

Stage 4 is 152.9 km from Rovereto to Predazzo, starting at the Sommo pass (15.7 km, 7.3%) and running through mountainous terrain until the Pramadiccio pass and the climb finish in Predazzo.

The final stage from Cavarese to Brunico also climbs the 1808-meter-high Lavazze Pass and passes through Val Pusteria. After crossing the finish line in Brunico, the riders will face the Rio Molino climb (7.8 km, 8.2%).

These five stages were heralded by new race ambassador Sonny Colbrelli, who recently announced his retirement due to heart problems. He is set to win the European road race title in Trento in 2021.

"When the stages are short, as in the Tour de Alps, the race is more spectacular and the riders are more on the attack.

"The climbs aren't as long, but they are harder and the descents are more important; 2021 gave me a lot as a rider, but the events of 2022 took a lot from me. But it is important to enjoy life and I feel happy to be here and talk about bike racing. My life goes on and I look forward to participating in the Tour of the Alps in 2023."

2023 Tour of the Alps:

Monday, April 17: Stage 1: Rattenberg-Alpbach, 127.5 km

Tuesday, April 18: Stage 2: Leit im Alpbachtal-Litten/Lennon, 165.2 km

Wednesday, April 19: Stage 3: Ritten/Lenon to Brentonico/San Valentino, 162. 5 km

Thursday, April 20: Stage 4: Rovereto - Predazzo, 152.9 km

Friday, April 21: Stage 5: Cavalese - Brunec/Brunico, 144.5 km.