Intermarché-Wanty’s Simone Petilli has said he “feels in danger” after crashing during stage 10 of the Vuelta a España when protesters entered the road, with fellow rider Louis Vervaeke urging demonstrations be carried out “in a safe manner” and the CPA stressing that the peloton “just want to race in safe conditions.”
Stage 10 of the race was interrupted on Tuesday when anti-Israel demonstrators entered the course, the Italian rider brought down as the peloton attempted to avoid them during the 175-kilometre stage to Belagua.
??| La Vuelta Euskal Herrian barrena dabil gaur eta bihar, @IsraelPremTech talde sionistaren presentziaren aurkako protesten erdian. Begira zer gertatu den Irunberrin.
GENOZIDAK EZ DIRA ONGI ETORRIAK EUSKAL HERRIAN! #LaVuelta25 #StopGazaGenocideNOW pic.twitter.com/rimAvHPRTo
— Malcolm iXa ? (@ideiazabaldub) September 2, 2025
Footage showed spectators lined along the roadside with Palestinian flags before three protesters forced their way onto the tarmac. Guardia Civil officers tried to pull them back, with video showing baton strikes against activists, including one woman who was hit multiple times.
Amidst the disruption, Petilli fell, though he was able to finish the stage and remains 100th overall.
Posting on social media this morning, the 32-year-old Intermarché-Wanty rider said: “I understand that is not a good situation, but yesterday I crashed because of a protest on the road. Please, we are just cyclists and we are doing our job, but if it will continue like this our safety is not guaranteed anymore, and we feel in danger! We just want to race! Please.”
? Nouvelle manifestation propalestinienne sur la 10e étape de la Vuelta. Des manifestants ont notamment tenté de traverser la route pendant le passage des coureurs. L’Italien Simone Petilli (Intermarché-Wanty) serait tombé lors de cette séquence. #LesRP pic.twitter.com/lAPXSGM6dX
— Eurosport France (@Eurosport_FR) September 2, 2025
Adam Hansen, president of the riders’ union, Cyclistes Professionnels Associés (CPA), also weighed in, saying: “The CPA wishes to express its full support to the riders following yesterday’s incident, where a protest on the road caused a crash during the race.
“We remind everyone that cyclists are not involved in political or social disputes — they are simply doing their job: racing. Their safety must never be put at risk.
“While we respect the right to peaceful protest, actions that endanger athletes cannot be accepted. Rider safety must remain the highest priority. The CPA stands firmly with the riders: they just want to race in safe conditions.”
Fellow rider from Soudal Quick-Step, Louis Vervaeke, also commented last night: “We fully acknowledge that everyone has the right to protest. However, we kindly ask that this be done in a safe manner. Our focus here is on our sport, not on politics or any particular position in this matter. I respectfully urge you not to endanger either us or yourselves.”
As the peloton passed through the green valleys of Navarre towards Belagua, the roadside was filled with Palestinian flags, chants of “Palestina,” and placards reading “Stop Genocide.” At one point during the broadcast, the TV camera lingered on the words “Netanyahu Assassin” painted on the road against the backdrop of the Pyrenean mountains.
One local took to Twitter saying: “The Vuelta is passing through the Basque Country today and tomorrow, amidst protests against the presence of the Zionist team Israel-Premier Tech. Look at what happened in Irunberri [Lumbier]. Genocides are not welcome in the Basque Country!”
The Basque Country has for decades shown strong solidarity with Palestine, with locals drawing parallels between their own history of repression under the dictatorial Franco regime and the Palestinian struggle for self-determination.
Palestinian flags can often be seen on balconies and public buildings in Bilbao and San Sebastián, while town-twinning initiatives, regional government grants to Palestinian refugees, and activist groups and organisations protesting against Israel’s actions in Gaza are a frequent occurrence.
Today’s stage 11 begins and ends in Bilbao and passes through Guernica, a town synonymous with resistance since its destruction during the Spanish Civil War and now home to one of the strongest pro-Palestine movements in the region.
A Reddit user from Bilbao commented: “Tomorrow will see the biggest pro-Palestine protests, and they will affect the race at multiple points. I don’t think there exists a singular town that has as strong a pro-Palestine movement as Gernika. Honestly, I think we will see protests affect the race like we’ve never seen.”
Pro-Palestinian campaigners have argued that their actions are directed not at individual riders but at the presence of Israel-Premier Tech in the peloton, which serves as a vehicle for promoting Israel’s international image, and have repeatedly called on the UCI to exclude the squad from competition.
Protest organisers describe IPT’s participation as a form of “sportswashing”, pointing out that cycling races like the Tour de France and Vuelta a España provide hours of live television coverage and opportunities to associate Israel’s name with a prestigious sporting event.
The team’s co-owner, Canadian-Israeli billionaire Sylvan Adams, has long presented IPT as “ambassadors” for the country and a means of promoting a “more realistic vision” of modern Israel. Earlier this year, Adams was criticised after remarks in Israeli media in which he said the Israel Defence Force “needs to finish the job” in Gaza.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement (BDS) has accused the UCI of “helping to sportswash Israel’s Gaza genocide by allowing Israel-Premier Tech to participate,” contrasting the decision with the governing body’s ban on Russian and Belarusian teams after the invasion of Ukraine. In its call for mobilisation at the Grand Tours this year, BDS referred to IPT as “Team Genocide.”
> Israel – Premier Tech team time trial interrupted by pro-Palestine protest at Vuelta a España
Just last week, Israel-Premier Tech’s team time trial on stage five of the Vuelta was also interrupted by activists, forcing riders to slow and, in some cases, stop altogether.
The team later said it “respects everyone’s right to freedom of speech, which includes the right to protest peacefully, but we absolutely condemn the dangerous acts of the protesters on stage 5 of the Vuelta a España which not only compromised the safety of our riders, race personnel, but the protesters themselves.”
Protests targeting the team have taken place throughout the 2025 season. At the Tour de France, an activist wearing a t-shirt reading “Israel out of the Tour” ran into the finishing straight in Toulouse.
Claiming responsibility for the act, Extinction Rebellion said the protest was carried out “to denounce Tour de France’s complicity in the genocide” and accused the race of “helping restore the image of the Israeli colonial regime” by allowing Israel-Premier Tech to participate.
XR Toulouse also criticised Adams, claiming that Israel-Premier Tech was created with the aim of “bleaching the image of the Israeli colonial regime”. The group said in a statement: “Neutrality does not exist. Not acting in a situation of oppression is like taking the side of the oppressor.”
At the Giro too, during the finale of the stage to Naples, pro-Palestine activists ran into the road, on that occasion in front of a charging peloton, and not a two-up sprint. Other protests were seen at the Tour Down Under in Australia at the start of the season.
Riders formerly associated with the team have also spoken about their departure. Last month, Jakob Fuglsang said it was “definitely nicer to ride without an Israel logo,” while Alessandro De Marchi said he was “happy and relieved” not to represent the squad any more, urging the cycling world “to show awareness of what’s going on in Gaza.”
Meanwhile, just ahead of the Vuelta, expected team leader Derek Gee announced that he had terminated his contract with the team, the Canadian rider stating “certain issues simply made my continuation at the team untenable”.
International human rights organisations have accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. Amnesty International, Médecins Sans Frontières, and UN-appointed experts have cited mass civilian deaths, forced displacement, starvation, and the destruction of infrastructure.
Israel’s own rights group B’Tselem, together with Physicians for Human Rights–Israel, concluded in July that the Israeli assault amounted to genocide, describing the targeting of Palestinians “only because of their identity.”
4 thoughts on ““We’re just cyclists doing our job”: Anti-Israel protest causes crash at Vuelta, as rider says peloton “feels in danger””
Doing a great job of getting
Doing a great job of getting anyone protesting against Israel or any other cause banned completely from events like this. What is wrong with people. Like genuinely. What do they think they are achieving by putting riders lives and their own at risk. Would like to see people that do this be treated as the danger they are.
Peaceful protesting is absolutely fine. This is not and should be treated as the danger it is.
The problem is peaceful
The problem is peaceful protesting doesn’t usually work. Political embarrassment or disruption of profits are the only effective measure.
I feel sorry for the cyclists affected, however the conduct of Netanyahu and his cronies is a disgrace, with the sole aim of appeasing Israeli extremist supporters and holding onto power. Most relatives of hostages do not support the continued Israeli attacks on Gaza, as it increases the chances of the hostages being harmed, either by the military actions or retaliation by captors.
Maybe those complaining about
Maybe those complaining about being put in danger should go to Gaza.
Then they would know all about it.
“We’re just cyclists doing
“We’re just cyclists doing our job”
As long as they weren’t just following orders.
The frankly disgusting, revolting and inhumane situation in Gaza needs to be protested at any and every opportunity, and cycling cannot be excluded from that.