17 Vuelta a España protesters face fines and bans from sport

The Spanish Anti-Violence Commission for Sport has proposed fines and sanctions against 17 people who protested during the Vuelta a España and were investigated by local police.

The “Comisión Estatal contra la Violencia, el Racismo, la Xenofobia y la Intolerancia en el Deporte – the State Commission against Violence, Racism, Xenophobia, and Intolerance in Sport – proposed the sanctions after reports by the Spanish police after stage 12 to Los Corrales de Buelna, stage 14 to La Farrapona (stage 14) and stage 15 to Monforte de Lemos.

It appears the commission has still to consider protests that occurred later in the Vuelta a especially during the final stage to Madrid, when protesters invaded the roads in central Madrid, forcing organisers to end the stage prematurely.

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The Commission focuses on the prevention of violence in sporting events and more usually deals with acts of violence and abuse in Spanish football stadiums.

The Commission said that 17 people face fines of between € 3, 000 and 4,000 and six-month bans from attending sporting events.

This year’s Vuelta was hit by a growing number of Pro-Palestine protests, with many contesting the presence of the Israel-Premier Tech team in the Spanish Grand Tour.

Stage 11 to Bilbao was neutralised with three kilometres to go due to protests, and then stage 16 was indeed at the foot of the final climb after protestors invaded the road with three kilometres to go.

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Riders voted to neutralise the racing if there were more protests. The time trial was shortened as a precaution, and then the Madrid stage ended early to avoid the mass protest in the Spanish capital.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez publicly supported the Vuelta protests in support of Palestine and then called for Israel to be banned from competing in international sports, like Russia was after it invaded Ukraine.

In October 2023, a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, sparked Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza. So far, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 64,000 people have been killed by Israeli attacks, with much of Gaza being destroyed.

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The protests in Madrid turned violent, with barriers piled up on the road and scuffles with police. So far, there have not been similar violent protests at other professional races, but protests are expected as the situation in Gaza worsens.

“I’ve never experienced so much hatred. There was absolutely no attention being paid to anything. It was all about destroying things,” Visma-Lease a Bike team manager Richard Plugge said after his team celebrated Jonas Vingegaard’s overall victory at their service course in the Netherlands on Tuesday.

“I thought it was really intense. Riders were being attacked. At one point, someone was pulled off their bike. As far as I’m concerned, the UCI should have given the Vuelta more support much earlier.

“This is almost something that transcended the sport. Something was happening in Spain. Normally, there are always demonstrations with respect for the sport. I expect that will continue in the final races of the season.”