After months of controversy, the Israel-Premier Tech cycling team has announced that it will change its name and identity from the start of the 2026 season, with owner Sylvan Adams stepping back from his day-to-day involvement and “no longer speak[ing] on behalf of the team.”
This move comes after the team was subject to several protests in recent months concerning its links to the state of Israel and the squad’s involvement in cycling’s biggest races amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza, described by the United Nations as a genocide.
These pro-Palestine demonstrations, which also took place at this year’s Giro d’Italia and Tour de France, reached a frenzied crescendo at a chaotic, turbulent Vuelta a España last month.
The Spanish grand tour saw activists run onto the road, roads blocked, clashes between police and protesters, and stage finishes abruptly cancelled, including on the final day in Madrid, where several mass protests spilled over into street violence.
In September’s WorldTour races in Québec City and Montréal, where protests also took place, the squad was referred to as ‘IPT’ on official race signage as a “security measure to detract attention”, while most recently, the squad was blocked from competing at this month’s Italian semi-classics, such as the Giro dell’Emilia.
As well as the growing number of protests, there has also been pressure from sponsors to change the team’s identity, with founder and CEO of the team’s bike supplier Factor, Rob Gitelis, insisting that “without a name change, without a flag change, we won’t continue”.
Meanwhile, Canadian company and co-sponsor Premier Tech said at the end of September that the situation “is no longer sustainable” and it expects “the team will evolve towards a new name that excludes the term Israel, and that it will adopt a new identity and brand image.”
And now, in a statement issued on Monday afternoon, the squad confirmed that it will “rename and rebrand” ahead of the 2026 season, a move the team says is essential to securing its long-term future in the sport.
The full statement, posted on the team’s website and social media pages, is as follows:
Eleven years ago, the Cycling Academy team was founded with a vision of nurturing young talent from non-traditional cycling countries, including Israel, providing aspiring riders with a clear pathway to professional cycling.
Over the past 11 years, the team, which evolved to Israel – Premier Tech four years ago, has experienced the highs and lows that come with professional sport, from the pure joy of seeing our riders win Tour de France stages to the challenge of relegation, and fighting back to the WorldTour. It is, and always has been, a sporting project.
The team takes pride in its achievements on the road, but even more so in the culture it has built within. This culture has been the foundation that enabled the team to overcome the challenges of recent months, standing firmly behind our riders and staff during an incredibly difficult period. Throughout this time, the team’s owners and management have recognized the need for change.
With steadfast commitment to our riders, staff, and valued partners, the decision has been made to rename and rebrand the team, moving away from its current Israeli identity. In sport, progress often requires sacrifice, and this step is essential to securing the future of the team.
Looking ahead to the 2026 season, Sylvan Adams has chosen to step back from his day-to-day involvement and will no longer speak on behalf of the team, instead focusing on his role as President of the World Jewish Congress, Israel.
Although a new chapter awaits, one that will be revealed soon, the team will remain true to its founding promise: to develop cycling talent from around the world.
To our fans: thank you for your unwavering support throughout the years, and especially during these past few weeks. We look forward to continuing this journey together.
Despite what its name and branding, at least until the end of 2025, might suggest – especially in a sport where Bahrain and the UAE also serve as title sponsors – Israel-Premier Tech is not officially state-owned.
Instead, it was founded by Canadian-Israeli billionaire Adams, one of Canada’s biggest real estate investors, who emigrated to Israel in 2015.
Nevertheless, the squad has received some funding from Israel’s ministry for tourism and Adams – who attended Donald Trump’s inauguration, encouraged US attacks on Iran in June, and called on Israel to “finish the job” in Gaza – has described the team as “ambassadors” for Israel and a means of promoting a “more realistic vision” of modern Israel.
Due to these links to Israel, and the state’s actions in Gaza, Israel-Premier Tech’s presence at the Vuelta sparked widespread protests which grew through the first week and escalated as the race reached the Basque Country.
The Bilbao stage was neutralised before the final stage in Madrid was abandoned after protesters stormed the finish circuit, making news headlines around the world.
Throughout the three weeks, numerous crashes were caused by protesters running into the road, riders repeatedly expressing fears for their safety and putting the team under pressure to withdraw to bring an end to the protests.
The UCI, however, accused the Spanish government of “exploiting sport for political purposes” by backing the demonstrators’ protests against Israel-Premier Tech’s participation at the Vuelta.
Describing the protesters’ actions as “militant”, the governing body’s statement condemned the “unacceptable and counterproductive” stance taken by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who called for Israel to be banned from all sports events following the cancelled Madrid stage, arguing that the nation should not be permitted to “whitewash” its “barbarism” in Gaza.
“We regret the fact that the Spanish Prime Minister and his government have supported actions that could hinder the smooth running of a sporting competition and, in some cases, expressed their admiration for the demonstrators,” the UCI said.
Doubling down on the statement, UCI president David Lappartient argued at the World Championships in Rwanda that Israeli athletes are “welcome” at races and “sport is not a tool for punishment”.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also expressed support for the team, praising riders and staff for “not giving in to hate and intimidation, while team boss Sylvan Adams said they would “not surrender to terrorists” and will “never ride without the name Israel”, a stance on which he appears to have finally relented this week.
During the Vuelta the team told us it would not change its name, but did finish the race in kit that omitted reference to Israel. In March 2024, Israel-Premier Tech also removed mention of Israel from team vehicles as a “precautionary measure”.
49 thoughts on “Israel-Premier Tech cycling team to “rebrand and rename” for 2026, “moving away from Israeli identity””
Completely missing the point
Completely missing the point of the protests. Changing the name does not change the company, still an Israeli company.
That’s pure supposition..
That’s pure supposition.
Neither the team’s future ownership or registration have been addressed in this article.
Both may change – or they may not.
All that is certain is that Admams will have much less to do with the team and the the team’s name will not include Israel.
If they’re still registered
If they’re still registered to the colonial-terrorist entity cycling federation, and or still run by and/or owned by an Israeli genocide supporter, there’s a non-negligible chance they will still face protests.
I think that’s right. If
I think that’s right. If Adams had previously bankrolled the team whilst keeping his views to himself, or if there had not previously been any protests and he’d quietly and pre-emptively dropped the Israel name then the team would be no more a target than any other business owned by someone who happens to be Jewish …. but he hasn’t and there has, so I can see further noise around the team – but on a scale where it is a niche gripe which fails to gain traction and fades away rather than one which gathers momentum as it undoubtedly was doing during the Vuelta.
I’m old enough to have been a student at a time when anyone who cared about humanity (not me at the time, I should add) was arguing passionately for a campus-wide boycott of Nestle products. Three decades on, the corporate behaviour hasn’t really changed but for some reason it’s never really caught on as a popular campaign and A-list celebrities are still happy being the face of their awful (apparently) coffee. I don’t see why this team can’t have a similar future … eventually.
How ghoulish. The team has
How ghoulish. The team has carried the Israel logo for so long, while the state of Israel has been and is still genociding thousands and thousands of unarmed Palestinian people. A change of name is, like Cyclorik says, total nonsense. Nobody should ever support this team again, or have anything to do with the state of Israel, until Israel gives back to Palestinians in full.
Unfortunately I strongly
Unfortunately I strongly suspect the pro-Palestine obsessive nutters will not be swayed by this, because they revel in their virtue-signalling rebel schtick and love to disrupt, whether that’s wrecking an entire sporting event if they can, or breaking into British military establishments and causing damage to aircraft. Even a British Labour government are embarrassed by them. Many of their mob are simply delusional, but quite a number are just basically antisemitic.
Whatever Adams does, it’s still basically Jewish money going into the team, so this won’t be enough.
Shame on people protesting
Shame on people protesting genocide….
I do love these gormless,
I do love these gormless, simplistic attitudes.
Hamas are hellbent on destroying Israel and Jews in general, funded by Iran for years. Even the Arab world are largely ashamed of them. There is still huge support for Hamas in Gaza, despite the fact they use their own people as human shields by hiding in and under schools and hospitals. Gazan kids are taught to hate Jews. There’s been several chances for a state of Palestine over the decades, normally wrecked by Palestinians (some by Israel, admittedly).
I suggest you check out this video for some idea of the local mindset, and you might want to recall how young, semi-naked, raped Jewish girls were paraded through the streets of Gaza to jeering, baying public mobs before being murdered in cold blood.
They’re fanatics. I do hope you enjoy supporting them. Oh, and much of the Aid meant for the people is stolen by Hamas.
https://saturday-october-seven.com/#/civilsettlements/photos/civil_photos_c10
Likud was founded in the
Likud was founded in the 1970s explicitly to *oppose* there _ever_ being any two-state solution. That was _decades_ before Hamas. Likud have been the dominant party of government of the colonial-terrorist entity for _MOST OF THE FIVE DECADES_. Likud have been in power for about 33 years of the last 48 years.
You can not claim with any honesty that it is the Palestinians who refused peace, when Israel is led by a hardcore anti-peace party most of the time! (And long long before Hamas!).
Everything you say is projection. Israeli children are taught in schools to hate Arabs. There are innumerable videos of Israeli school kids singing hateful songs, (e.g. chants of “May your village burn” – the ITF and/or settlers being the ones who start it; led by adults often!). There are innumerable videos of ITF soldiers parading Palestinians around, including with Palestinian prisoners strapped to the front of their jeeps! There are videos of ITF abusing women at checkpoints, including making sexual remarks and trying to fondle young *teenage girls*.
There are no videos of raped Jewish girls paraded through Gaza, that is a lie.
I have seen no videos of Hamas using hospitals or schools or civilians as human shields. I have seen *plenty* of videos of ITF using Palestinian schools and hospitals as bases – war crimes. I have seen desperate hasbara from the ITF where they try claim some hospital room was a hamas base – until people point out things like “The paper you claim is a Hamas document is just a rota of doctors for the hospital”, etc.
You are a shameless nation of psychopathic, genocidal, lying, murderous thieves.
Oh dear. You deny Hamas hide
Oh dear. You deny Hamas hide under hospitals and schools? Their tunnels are everywhere! Even the bloody BBC have admitted there are Hamas hideouts under hospitals. You’ll probably say the BBC are Right Wing 🤣. What’s this, Scotch mist? https://youtu.be/7vB0UPUT4P4?si=l4TbfPlaq9yfDGlc .
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-67629181 .
I am a shameless nation of psychopathic, genocidal, lying, murderous thieves? Who is “I”? Do you think I’m Jewish or something? I’m not, I just have a brain. Do you think everyone in the West has fallen for the “genocide” schtick? Undoubtedly the IDF are brutal, but look what they are up against.
If we accept that Hamas is a
If we accept that Hamas is a terrorist organisation, it still doesn’t make it OK to e.g. deliberately withhold aid and starve civilians to flush them out. If you can’t see that, then there’s not much hope for you as a human being, and I find it hard to believe you’re a cyclist. That’s not us.
panda wrote:
Reaching for No True Cyclist is getting a little desperate.
OK – I find it hard to
OK – I find it hard to believe he can’t empathise through the lens at the life of someone on the wrong side of institutionally supported violence. A modern cyclist would. Unless they’re the sort of arsehole who wears their sunglasses *inside* their helmet straps, obviously.
tldr: this isn’t the right forum for this debate.
There you go again. Twat. Oh,
There you go again. Twat. Oh, I’m kind of OK because I’m a cyclist, but I’m not a “modern cyclist”. Think I said it before, but for the wilfully ignorant, do grow up.
Do you think – on balance –
Do you think – on balance – that you’re helping your cause?
I can honestly see both sides of this one – if the shoe was on the other foot etc. and for the record I think the right solution is for the US (I would say NATO … but … well) to put troops on the original border and say “you can have your land but step out of line again and we turn it into molten glass” – but when you use the sort of language you’re using to describe people who don’t agree with you (“Gays for Palestine”? What even is that?) rather than use even slightly conciliatory language (e.g. “well, I can see how you might be forming that view based on what you’re seeing in the UK mainstream media, but here’s how it is here on the ground …”), you make me feel that the caricatures are fair. And that can’t be your intent can it?!?
Apology. I just realised
Apology. I just realised “caricature” could be misinterpreted; absolutely not my intent. I’m referring specifically to the caricature of Israel as a nation looking for an excuse to do a bit of ethnic cleansing under the banner of self-defence. Not saying it is, just saying that’s a cartoonist angle and e.g. calling me a member of “Gays for Palestine” isn’t helping to convince people it isn’t.
Indeed.
Indeed.
Play the argument, don’t play the man.
But if someone does it to me I’ll do it to them.
“We had to destroy the
“We had to destroy the village to save it”…
But then … trying to think on the other side there is the “would *not* dropping the atomic bombs have saved lives overall – compared to the alternatives proposed to end WWII (invasion – with the Japanese command prepared to deploy the civilian population in millions against armed forces)?”
EDIT I see someone went there already…
What is often forgotten is
What is often forgotten is that the Soviets had joined in the war against Japan just as uncle Joe had promised. The utter defeat of the Japanese army of Manchuria was one of the greatest advances of the second world war, the Japanese were scared for the remnants of their military and the prospect of invasion by the Soviets, at that point the greatest military force the world had ever seen.
ktache wrote:
And also that there’s a reasonable case (supported by some historians, disputed by others) that in addition to the stated aims of preventing loss of US/Allied lives the nuclear bombs were used to end the war quickly to ensure Russia didn’t have an excuse/opportunity to become involved in the Pacific theatre and to give Stalin a graphic example of what the US had up its sleeve should Russia make any attempt to keep pressing westwards from Berlin in Europe.
Well, the Japanese had taken
Well, the Japanese had taken worse already in the firebombing of Tokyo (and in fact many of their major cities had suffered severe loss of life). And they didn’t immediately capitulate after the first bomb. And the “nuclear demo for the Russians” probably has some truth (of course few countries have ever kept their new superweapons secret for long for obvious reasons ).
Another complex and contested subject though, so increasingly OT.
A huge amount of Aid going
A huge amount of Aid going into Gaza, both food and medicines, is diverted and stolen by Hamas. So then gullible, handwringing snowflakes in the West such as yourself get all upset and talk 6th Form politics. What are you, a paid-up member of Gays for Palestine? I don’t mean that as a homosexual slur at all, merely pointing out your vacuous, sanctimonious, hypocritical viewpoint.
I’ve been a cyclist for 45 years, I was a 1st Cat Roadman, no less than three of my good mates got mown down and killed by errant drivers over those years, you wanna start talking about cycling badges of honour? I also care for the environment and love the countryside. Do grow up.
Vo2Maxi wrote:
How exactly is using ‘gay’ to mean ‘vacuous, sanctimonious, and hypocritical’ not intending it as a slur?
Try reading the whole post,
Try reading the whole post, in context.
Vo2Maxi wrote:
In precisely what context is saying “What are you, a paid-up member of Gays for Palestine?” acceptable or justifiable?
Well it was either going to
Well it was either going to be gay, woke lefty, or libtard I suppose.
Fewer.
Fewer.
Vo2Maxi wrote:
Help me to help you. Is this true? Have you got e.g. a Bellingcat or BBC Verify article to link to? Rightly or wrongly all that’s making the news in the UK is IDF soldiers firing live rounds at civilians trying to get food and the UN using the word “genocide”. If that’s *not* what’s happening then post authenticated sources because otherwise people like me – and as mentioned before I like to think I’m quite balanced – will take what they see on the news as reliable.
Vo2Maxi wrote:
For when you need a hit double quick.
Paul J wrote:
I think whatever the evidence on what has happened over the last 2 years or indeed several decades (and the rationale given for it / comparison to what other places may have done etc)…
… we can safely say the *poster* isn’t that. Nor are all or even most Israelis. (OTOH i could believe that the majority have little sympathy for anything which happens to those in Gaza in the name of “security”).
And of course while the current government is committing some of those actions (in the opinion of many and indeed international courts) – and policies aimed at gaining land and shifting certain people off it have been going there for a lot longer – I think you’ll find it’s a bit more complex. And of course not a few states have built themselves by doing likewise. (Notably the US: but the UK – both in the last century and times before – has been involved in multiple episodes of violence which look a lot like ethnic cleansing at the very least).
Let’s just hope against hope that it’s worth it to Trump’s ego to slow down this latest round. Doesn’t seem like anyone other than the US has much leverage, the rest can only hope that we can sway some Americans (and possibly Germany, and persuade our own government to use its arms-procurement choices politically).
Playing who’s worse than who?
Playing who’s worse than who? is a neverending parlour game. Let’s remember that Hamas make no claim to believe in democracy, the rule of law, or human rights. They are reviled and rightly so. However if you claim to uphold those international norms and wantoly fail to uphold them, you too are deserving of opprobrium, distain and prosecution. Killing innnocents is wicked and is to be condemned whoever pulls the trigger or drops the bomb. The dead are just as dead irrespective of who they were or which side of the divide they lived. Where do you stand on the slaughter of innocents?
There you go, oversimplifying
There you go, oversimplifying it again.
It’s like Japan in WW2. What do you do if you’re in a war with suicidal fanatics? How do you deal with that? Hamas use their own people as human shields after October 7th (in itself a vile, disgusting act) and hold hundreds of hostages in tunnels and amongst their own population. Did you ever see a skinny Hamas terrorist? Are they hungry like their own people? No. They don’t give a shit about their own people, in the sense that they’re expendable.
That’s why America dropped the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, you cant deal with fanatics in a “normal warfare” way.
But if you manage to destroy them there are less deaths overall in the long run.
These are unpalatable truths, but truths nonetheless.
A similar thing is going on in Ukraine, with Putin feeding his young men into the meat grinder. He doesn’t care. Stalin too.
You didn’t answer the
You didn’t answer the question. Your silence is all too eloquent.
You fail to recognise that
You fail to recognise that the majority of the Gazan public still support Hamas.
Infact I’m pretty sure I saw a poll conducted in the UK with the same result.
Pretty scary, no?
Vo2Maxi wrote:
Polling this year has consistently shown support for Hamas amongst the people of Gaza wavering between 21% and 38%. Additionally, the most recent UK polling available (YouGov July 2025) shows 37% of Britons have more sympathy with the people of Gaza (which does not of course mean with Hamas), 31% with the people of Israel and 17% have equal sympathy for both sides.
Oh you and your facts. You
Oh you and your facts.
The numbers may be different,
Sophistry is not the answer to my question.
Vo2Maxi wrote:
Fine, but can’t you just enjoy them in your head instead of posting them everywhere?
I merely respond in kind.
I merely respond in kind.
What are you, the self-appointed voice if reason?
If people on here use crappy ad hominem arguments they’ll get both barrels from me.
Vo2Maxi wrote:
I’m not sure that’s the criticism you seem to think it is.
What a bloody mess the middle
What a bloody mess the middle east is – 1 lot of people say it’s theirs, another, theirs. Far as I know in 1956 it was gifted part of Palestine by the UN. Over history the Jews have had many home areas and fought with different groups of people’s. I think a time of reckoning is needed, so that all that are at odds can put their 2 penneth down and it be shared accordingly, as the way it stands at the moment, it’s just 1 big shit-show massacring humans that deserve a good life 🙏
I thought this was a cycling
I thought this was a cycling site…
There’s plenty of places to have a legitimate debate about the Israeli government, Hamas and Palestine – but not sure this is that place!
It’s a bit naive of Road.cc to allow comments to this article as it would be clear to most people that it would decend into this…
Good. Keep up the boycott,
Good. Keep up the boycott, divestment and sanctions. Civil society must stand up to genocide, occupation and apartheid in Palestine.
Rome73 wrote:
Only in Palestine?
Rome73 wrote:
Only in Palestine?
There is, literally, no
There is, literally, no “Palestine”.
If all true cyclists, truly a
If all true cyclists, truly a daft term that, opposed ALL genocide and not only the genocide perpetrated by Israel there would be no support for UAE, Bahrain Victorious or Jayco Alula. Is all the focus on Israel because the genocide is front page news at the moment and not taking place in the shadows?
Could of course be
Could of course be antisemitism-based, that might explain it.
You’re right about the front page business though, and it gives all the virtue-signallers a chance to wear a tea towel and high-five each other in the street. Like, right-on, bro.
We’ve now closed comments on
We’ve now closed comments on this thread.