Pro-Palestinian Protests Cause Early End to Major Spanish Cycling Race

The Washington Post

15:12 JST, September 16, 2025

The final stage of the Spanish Vuelta was cut short in the wake of the latest pro-Palestinian protest to disrupt the Grand Tour cycling race.

More than 100,000 people participated in the protest, according to Spanish authorities. Two arrests were reportedly made in that span, while 22 police officers were said to have been injured.

Danish star Jonas Vingegaard was crowned the winner, but there was no official podium ceremony, in accordance with directions from race organizers. In a terse statement announcing the early end, they said it was for unspecified “security reasons.”

Protesters clashed with police Sunday in Madrid, where the Vuelta was scheduled to end its 21st and final stage. The race leg, slated for 64.3 miles from Alalpardo, Spain, was halted about halfway to the finish line near the Royal Palace in the capital.

Protesters blocked the peloton just as it reached Madrid, where the race was set to conclude with several laps. Barricades were overturned amid confrontations with some of the 1,500-plus police officers along the route, per reports.

“Madrid has been overwhelmed by violence,” the city’s mayor, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, wrote in an X post. “They have managed to ruin the final stage of the Vuelta and give a shameful image of our country.”

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez expressed support Sunday for the protesters, many of whom have carried Palestinian flags and signs excoriating Israel for its war in Gaza. The demonstrations, Sánchez said (via Reuters), gave him “admiration for the Spanish people mobilizing for just causes like Palestine.”

A focus of the protesters’ ire was an Israeli team, Israel-Premier Tech, competing in the Vuelta. Before the race’s 14th stage, riders for the squad were given jerseys that omitted the team name. Israel-Premier Tech said at the time (via the Associated Press) the decision was made “in the interest of prioritizing the safety of our riders and the entire peloton, in light of the dangerous nature of some protests at Vuelta.”

The 11th stage was also called off early because of pro-Palestinian protests, which occurred near the day’s finish line in Bilbao. Organizers declared that there would be no stage winner, though points were awarded in specific categories such as mountain and sprint. The course for the 18th stage was altered on the fly with an eye toward “ensuring greater protection,” organizers said, a day after riders voted not to abandon the Vuelta amid the protests.

The race’s penultimate stage Saturday was also disrupted, but it quickly resumed (via the Associated Press) and saw Vingegaard all but seal his victory by pulling away on a steep finishing climb.

A two-time winner of the Tour de France, Vingegaard added a third Grand Tour title Sunday to his impressive résumé. He has yet to participate in the other Grand Tour, the Giro d’Italia, which annually comes before the Tour de France. Vingegaard’s great rival, Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia, sat out the Vuelta this year after winning the Tour de France.

Matthew Riccitello, an American rider for Israel-Premier Tech, finished the Vuelta in fifth place in the overall classification. Two Americans on Vingegaard’s Team Visma-Lease a Bike, Sepp Kuss and Matteo Jorgenson, finished seventh and 10th, respectively.

With the planned closing ceremonies scrapped, Vingegaard and other top finishers eventually staged a makeshift podium celebration. Standing on boxes in the relative darkness of a Madrid parking lot, they sprayed one another with champagne to cap the three-week competition.

“It’s a pity that such a moment of eternity was taken from us,” Vingegaard said. “I’m really disappointed about that. I was looking forward to celebrating this overall win with my team and the fans. Everyone has the right to protest but not in a way that influences or endangers our race.”