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Cycling's top stage racer, Spaniard Alberto Contador, said he felt inspired by the 2009 Vuelta de Espana route.

"The 2009 route is an exceptionally good one for me. Seeing it on the map makes me feel really keen to ride it again," said the 2007 Tour de France winner and Vuelta champion.

"It's a lot more mountainous than in 2008 and the time trials are shorter than this year's Tour of Spain. That suits me down to the ground," he told Spanish television.

But Contador, who also won the 2008 Giro d'Italia, will not make a final decision on his participation in his home race until after next year's main target, the Tour de France.

For the third time in its 73-year history, the next edition of the Tour of Spain starts abroad, with a 4.5km prologue on the famous motorbike circuit in Assen, Netherlands on August 29.

After three more stages in the Low Countries and a transfer back to Spain, the race heads southwards with tough mountain stages through the sierras of Valencia and Andalusia.

In the third week, back-to-back stages through the mountains of Avila and Segovia precede a last 26km time trial in Toledo.

Even though the route misses out on the Pyrenees and the notoriously difficult Angliru climb, the race's five summit finishes nonetheless favour mountain specialists.

"It's a Tour of Spain for climbers," 2008 Olympic road-race champion Samuel Sanchez of Spain said.

"The three high mountain stages, all with summit finishes, in Andalusia will almost certainly decide the race."

Next year's Vuelta finishes on September 20 in Madrid.

Reuters