Aimed on Friday by Propalentinian demonstrations of an unprecedented scale on the Tour of Spain, the members of the cycling team Israel Premier Tech admitted their “fear” when there are even more than a week of racing until the arrival in Madrid.
“We are afraid. We undergo insults, all kinds of verbal attacks, it’s hard, “said one of the two sports directors present on the race, the Spaniard Oscar Guerrero, on Radio Onda Cero.
These tensions have led the technical director of Vuelta Kiko Garcia to estimate this week that only a withdrawal from the team could guarantee the security of the peloton – a decision that does not fall under him, but of the International Cycling Union (UCI). And this scenario was excluded by Israel PT, which earned him the congratulations of Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu on Friday.
“You are the pride of Israel”
“Bravo to Sylvan (Adams, the Israeli-Canadian billionaire owner of the training, editor’s note) and the cycling team of Israel so as not to give in to hatred and intimidation. You are the pride of Israel, “he wrote in a message published on his official X account.
Since the start of the war in Gaza, triggered by the bloody attack of Hamas on October 7, 2023 followed by Israeli reprisals, several races, including the last Tour de France, have been marked by Propaletinian demonstrations.
Israel PT, which is a private structure and not a team-state like UAE for example, benefits from reinforced protection during the tests. The training has also asked its runners for a long time not to wear a “Israel” jersey in training to avoid being targeted.
The team pushed by ASO to withdraw
The Union International Cycling (UCI) “firmly” condemned the “actions” of the demonstrators in Bilbao and recalled “the fundamental importance of political neutrality in the sports competitions united within the Olympic movement”.
Israel-Prime Tech, who only has an Israeli runner in the workforce aligned with the Vuelta, wants to continue to Madrid, believing that a withdrawal “would create a dangerous precedent”.
Consulting the “massive support” of the president of UCI David Lappartient, the boss of Israel PT, Sylvan Adams, on the other hand, said that Aso, organizer of the Vuelta as in the Tour de France, had put pressure for his team to throw in the towel. The body has declined any comment from AFP. Israel PT will go well to Madrid, Terminus de la Vuelta on Sunday, September 14, he insisted, despite the risk of new disturbances.
