Throughout its history, 190 riders have won the Vuelta Espana general classification when they were under 26 years old. Any rider under 26 qualifies for the Young Rider Classification (white jersey) introduced in 2017.
Angelino Soler was the youngest winner of the Vuelta Espana general classification when he was 21 and 168 days old. He won the 1961 Vuelta Espana.
Gustaaf Deloor is the only rider under 26 who has won the General Classification twice, in 1935 and 1936. He also won three stages in each of these years respectively.
Remco Evenepoel is the only currently active rider who won the Vuelta Espana General Classification when he was under 26 in 2022.
For comparison, the average age of the Vuelta Espana general classification winner is 28 years and 2 months.
| Rider | Age | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Angelino Soler | 21 years, 168 days | 1961 |
| Gustaaf Deloor | 21 years, 325 days | 1935 |
| Frans De Mulder | 22 years, 153 days | 1960 |
| Gustaaf Deloor | 22 years, 336 days | 1936 |
| Remco Evenepoel | 22 years, 235 days | 2022 |
| Bernardo Ruiz | 23 years, 175 days | 1948 |
| Bernard Hinault | 23 years, 181 days | 1978 |
| Éric Caritoux | 23 years, 263 days | 1984 |
| Faustino Rupérez | 23 years, 286 days | 1980 |
| Luis Ocaña | 24 years, 337 days | 1970 |
Alex Lee is the founder and editor-at-large of Mr. Mamil. Coming from a professional engineering background, he breaks down technical cycling nuances into an easy-to-understand and digestible format here.
He has been riding road bikes actively for the past 12 years and started racing competitively in the senior category during the summer recently.