With about 15 kilometers remaining for the stage leaders, organizers announced that the day’s race would end three kilometers short due to the protests.
An Israeli cycling team refused Wednesday a hint by organizers to leave a prestigious race in Spain due to pro-Palestinian protests on the route, saying it would set a “dangerous precedent” for the future.
The Israeli Premier Tech team, competing in the Vuelta a España, issued a statement saying, “The team remains committed to continuing to compete in the Valletta. Any other course of action sets a dangerous precedent in cycling, not only for Israel Premier Tech, but for all teams.”
Earlier in the day, Kika Garcia, the director of the three-week race — the third and final Grand Tour of the men’s road cycling season — told a local radio station that he had asked the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the governing body of the sport, to have the Israelis withdraw.