The Israel-Premier Tech team has announced that it has removed the word Israel from its jerseys for the remainder of the Spanish bicycle race La Vuelta, citing safety concerns after repeated pro-Palestine protests disrupted the competition.<\/p>\n
The decision was made \u201cin the interest of prioritising the safety of our riders and the entire peloton, in light of the dangerous nature of some protests,\u201d the team said on social media on Saturday.<\/p>\n
The move follows days of tension at the Spanish cycling competition.<\/p>\n
Demonstrations against the team\u2019s participation forced Wednesday\u2019s stage in Bilbao to end 3 kilometres early. On Friday, Spanish police used batons to clear protesters from the road in Asturias, delaying the leaders by about 30 seconds.<\/p>\n
The team added that the uniforms now match its vehicles and casual clothing, which also avoid using the word Israel.<\/p>\n
In a Friday interview with Israeli publication Sport 5, Sylvan Adams, the Canadian-Israeli billionaire co-owner of the team and a close ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, dismissed the protesters in Spain\u2019s Basque Country as terrorists.<\/p>\n
The Amaury Sport Organisation, which runs La Vuelta, reportedly asked Israel-Premier Tech to consider bowing out of the race, but Adams said he refused. \u201cIf we give up, it\u2019s not just the end of our team, but of all the other teams,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
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