The footage of Alberto Contador's (opens in new tab) victory in Angril two years ago drew the loudest applause at the 2020 Vuelta a España route announcement in Madrid on Tuesday evening.

For many Spanish fans, and fans around the world, Contador's spectacular departure as a professional cyclist - the last victory of his career on Spain's toughest mountain stage - remains an unforgettable moment.

And the Spanish Grand Tour specialist admitted that he still gets emotional when he watches footage of that stage.

"When you turn pro, you think you're going to retire from cycling a long time from now, but that was a dream finale for my career," Contador admitted.

Angril will return to the Vuelta a España in 2020, coming one day after the climb to Farrapona, also in the Asturian mountains.

"Farapona will be a really hard stage next year," Contador suggested. The same day's climbs before Farapona, such as San Lorenzo and Colbertia, are very difficult and could break up the race even before the final climb." Overall, this will be an important stage for the Vuelta."

After 24 hours, the peloton will face Angliru, which Contador won in 2008 and nine years later.

"The Angliru is so hard that it can only be climbed slowly, but it will be a really important climb," Contador predicted.

"These two stages in Farapona and Angril will be the deciding stages of the Vuelta. The weather is often bad in Asturias at this time of year, which makes it even more difficult. week 3 ...... it is not so decisive."

"It is not so decisive.

While many media outlets focused on the classic mountain stages, Contador cited the Suances stage in week 2, just before the battles at Farapona and Angliru, as an example of how the race could split unexpectedly.

"One of the things I like about this Vuelta is that there are so many opportunities for riders to fight back and take advantage of the race on stages like the stage to Suanesse," Contador said.

Indeed, on the stage to Suanesse in the 2008 Vuelta, Contador allied with Paolo Bettini to attack Alejandro Valverde.

"Tourmalet is going to be mega hard, and having Aubisque and Soullor on the same stage could be really important, especially in hot weather," Contador said.

"But I also like stages with ambushes. Stages like Farapona and Angril in Asturias are very important for me personally, and the Vuelta might be decided there."