The world of professional cycling has found itself at the epicenter of an intensifying debate over sport, politics, and public safety, as the Israel-Premier Tech team has been officially excluded from Italy’s prestigious Giro dell’Emilia race, scheduled for October 4, 2025. This dramatic decision—announced on September 27 by race organiser Adriano Amici—follows a series of highly visible, disruptive protests targeting the Israeli-registered team at recent European cycling events, most notably the Vuelta a España in Spain. The exclusion has ignited passionate responses from local officials, international sporting bodies, and activists on all sides of the issue, underscoring the growing intersection of global conflict and athletic competition.
The spark for this exclusion was the chaos that unfolded during the final days of the Vuelta a España in Madrid earlier in September. There, tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters flooded the streets, expressing outrage at Israel’s ongoing military operations in Gaza and specifically targeting the participation of the Israel-Premier Tech squad. The protests were so intense that they forced the cancellation of the Vuelta’s final stage, with seven of the last eleven days of racing either cut short or interrupted. According to Spanish government estimates, more than 100,000 people took to the streets during the final stage alone. The message was clear: the presence of the Israeli team had become a lightning rod for protest, and the safety of athletes, staff, and spectators could not be guaranteed.
With the Giro dell’Emilia’s route featuring a final circuit through Bologna that is run five times—offering numerous opportunities for disruption—organisers faced mounting pressure. Bologna itself, a city with a storied tradition of left-wing activism and a large student population, had already seen its local government, controlled by the centre-left Democratic Party, call for the exclusion of Israel-Premier Tech. Roberta Li Calzi, the city’s sport councillor, welcomed the organisers’ decision, stating, “We are opposed to the participation of an Israeli team in the Giro dell’Emilia at a time like this, when the Israeli government is committing serious crimes against the civilian population in the Gaza Strip.”
Race organiser Adriano Amici, who just days earlier had insisted that it was not his place to exclude the team, reversed his stance in the face of escalating concerns. Speaking to Reuters and AFP, Amici explained, “It is with regret that, following recent events and given the characteristics of the final circuit, for the safety of all athletes, technical staff, and spectators, I have had to forgo the participation of the Team this year.” He added, “There’s too much danger for both the Israel Tech riders and others. The race’s final circuit is run five times so the possibility of the race being disrupted is very high.” Amici’s about-face was echoed in his comments to AFP: “The atmosphere is very tense; there was too much danger for the Israel-Premier Tech riders and the other riders.”
The Israel-Premier Tech team, co-owned by Israeli-Canadian billionaire Sylvan Adams, is not state-sponsored but is registered in Israel and features the nation’s name prominently in its branding. The title sponsor, Premier Tech—a multinational based in Quebec, Canada—recently indicated that it expects the team to be rebranded in the near future, reflecting the mounting pressure from sponsors and the international community. During the Vuelta a España, the team even removed its name from riders’ jerseys in an attempt to deflect attention, but to little avail.
In a statement to Reuters, a spokesperson for Israel-Premier Tech lamented, “We find it extremely regrettable that threats of violence have disrupted our sport,” while confirming that conversations with race organisers had been ongoing in the days leading up to the decision. “We wish the organisers a successful race.”
The exclusion of Israel-Premier Tech from the Giro dell’Emilia is not an isolated incident. Organisers of other major races have indicated similar intentions: Spanish stage race O Gran Camiño confirmed it would not invite the team next year, and local councils for the 2026 Vuelta a España and the Grand Départ of the 2026 Tour de France in Barcelona have also stated they will not allow the team’s participation. The ripple effect is being felt across the sporting world, with mounting calls to exclude Israel from global competitions. European football’s governing body, UEFA, is reportedly preparing to vote on whether to suspend Israel’s football team from all competitions under its jurisdiction, while the Eurovision Song Contest is also facing pressure to bar Israel from the 2026 event.
The context for these sweeping actions is the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The war began after a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people and resulted in 251 hostages. Since then, Israeli military operations in Gaza have killed at least 64,000 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, with much of the territory devastated by the fighting. The United Nations has described the situation as a “genocide,” a charge Israel vehemently denies, citing its right to self-defense. The International Court of Justice in The Hague is currently hearing a genocide case against Israel, and U.N. experts have called for Israel’s suspension from international football.
Against this backdrop, the role of sport as a vehicle for universal values and solidarity has been hotly debated. Bologna councillor Roberta Li Calzi articulated the sentiment shared by many in the city and beyond: “We believe that sport is a vehicle of universal values of sharing, fair competition, solidarity between people. We are satisfied to learn that this opinion is shared by the organization of the race, which today officially confirmed to us that the Israeli team will not take part in the Giro dell’Emilia. I thank them for this sensitivity, which I believe is shared by a large part of our community.”
The cycling world’s governing body, UCI, has so far resisted calls for a blanket ban on Israeli teams, with President David Lappartient insisting that Israeli athletes will continue to be welcomed at competitions. However, the practical realities on the ground—escalating protests, security threats, and mounting political pressure—have forced organisers’ hands, setting a precedent that could reshape the landscape of international sport.
As the Giro dell’Emilia approaches, the absence of Israel-Premier Tech will be keenly felt, both by those who see the exclusion as a necessary step for safety and by those who lament the intrusion of politics into the world of sport. The debate over the intersection of global conflict and athletic competition is far from over, and all eyes will be on Bologna as the cycling community navigates this fraught terrain. For now, the organisers’ decision stands as a striking example of how the world’s most pressing issues are increasingly playing out on the sporting stage.
