The 11th stage of Spain’s La Vuelta cycling race ended abruptly on Wednesday without an official winner, after pro-Palestinian demonstrators disrupted the finish in Bilbao (Basque Country).
The incident centred on riders from Israel Premier Tech, who were the protesters’ focus. Some individuals tried to enter the roadway as the Israeli team passed, forcing race officials and security personnel to intervene and push them back behind the barriers.
Police reinforcements were called in to contain the group, many of whom waved Palestinian flags and held pro-Palestinian placards.
Race authorities notified the teams when the riders still had about 10 kilometres remaining of the 157.4-kilometre stage, which both began and was set to end in Bilbao.
‘Due to some incidents at the finish line, we have decided to take the time at 3 km before the line. We won’t have a stage winner. We will give the points for the mountain classification and the intermediate sprint, but not on the finish line,’ officials announced.
Earlier in the day, protesters had already forced a brief halt at the start, with the peloton paused for several minutes.
By the scheduled finish, police had cordoned off the protesters and formed a line in front of the barriers. Even so, organisers opted not to risk letting the riders race into the area.
The disruption echoed a similar episode at July’s Tour de France, when a protester against Israel Premier Tech dashed onto the course near the finish before being tackled by a security guard.
The Israel Premier Tech team has been targeted before because of its links to Israel. Israel’s offensive in Gaza began after the 7 October 2023 Hamas assault, which killed 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures. In response, airstrikes and shelling have killed at least 63,746 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza. The United Nations considers those numbers credible.
In May 2024, Spain’s left-leaning coalition government formally recognised a Palestinian state, a decision that drew strong condemnation and threats from Israel. ALSO READ: Sánchez: ‘We have a moral duty to save lives in Gaza’, which is a ‘catastrophic situation of genocide’.
Kiko García, La Vuelta’s technical director, told Spain’s SER radio station there was concern that more protests could occur as long as the Israeli team remained in the race.
‘Everyone needs to try to find a solution,’ García said, ‘which for me right now is that the Israeli team realises that by being here it doesn’t help the safety of everyone else. But we can’t make that decision, the team has to do it.’
Israel Premier Tech issued a statement late on Wednesday insisting it had no plans to withdraw (see social media link below).
‘Any other course of action sets a dangerous precedent in the sport of cycling — not only for Israel Premier Tech, but for all teams,’ the statement read.
The team stressed that it supported the right to protest, but only ‘as long as those protests remain peaceful and do not compromise the safety of the peloton’.
‘However, the behaviour of protesters in Bilbao today was not only dangerous, but counterproductive to their cause and deprived the Basque cycling fans, some of the best cycling fans in the world, of the stage finish they deserve,’ it added.
Jonas Vingegaard of Visma-Lease a Bike, who currently leads the general classification, said it was frustrating that the riders couldn’t complete the stage.
‘It’s a big shame, we really would have loved to win the stage,’ he said, noting that he had hoped for a strong team performance on his son’s birthday.
Britain’s Tom Pidcock, riding for Q36.5 Pro Cycling, had been in the lead during the closing kilometres and admitted he was bitterly disappointed.
‘It’s hard to describe the disappointment, to be honest,’ he said. ‘I felt like today was my day. I had a good chance to win.’
Pidcock still crossed the finish line despite the official stoppage. Stage 12 on Thursday will cover 145 kilometres and include several medium mountain climbs.
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A statement regarding the @lavuelta pic.twitter.com/ouDXncGf7h
— Israel – Premier Tech (@IsraelPremTech) September 3, 2025
#LaVuelta25 pic.twitter.com/oM0toL3Q9I
— La Vuelta (@lavuelta) September 3, 2025
El Israel–Premier Tech descarta retirarse de la Vuelta.https://t.co/bzRAbN3Xuf pic.twitter.com/0cWt04aQcX
— EFE Noticias (@EFEnoticias) September 4, 2025
Kiko García, director técnico de La Vuelta: “No podemos expulsar al equipo israelí de la competición. Hay unas obligaciones que tenemos que cumplir para estar en la categoría ‘World Tour’ https://t.co/fINk5aZXfZ#LaHora4s pic.twitter.com/YOCPilmnYF
— La Hora de La 1 (@LaHoraTVE) September 4, 2025
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