‘We’re very optimistic people’ – Israel floats possibility of future Tour de France Grand Départ

The president of the Israel Cycling Federation has raised the possibility that the country could in the future play host to a Grand Départ of the Tour de France.

“I can’t tell you right now if we are going to apply for a Tour start or organise one, but we never stop dreaming,” Dafna Lang, the Israel Cycling Federation President told L’Équipe.

She referred in the same interview to the start of the 2018 Giro d’Italia, which took place in May 2018 in Israel, hosting three stages before returning to Sicily. It was the first time a Grand Tour had started outside Europe.

The driving force for that initiative was Sylvan Adams, owner of the Israel-Premier Tech WorldTour team, which started over a decade ago.

While saying that she could not speak for Adams, Lang said that “I believe that once we have a stable peace, we will carry out many projects at the highest level, welcoming the world. We are very optimistic people. We’ve already brought the Giro here, so anything is possible.”

In October 2023, a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, sparked Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. So far, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 68,000 people have been killed by Israeli attacks, with much of Gaza being destroyed. A fragile ceasefire was declared earlier this month, although it has already been broken several times.

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Israel-Premier Tech’s presence in road races this season was subject to multiple protests and disruptions by pro-Palestine demonstrators over the country’s invasion of Gaza, with the most dramatic incident taking place in the Vuelta a España.

Five stages had their routes altered or shortened to avoid potential standoffs or blockades. The last stage into Madrid was stopped after just 60 kilometres, after an estimated 100,000 protestors invaded the final circuit, with the final winners’ ceremony also cancelled.

Israel-Premier Tech then withdrew from a number of Italian races, including Il Lombardia, citing safety reasons, and since then has announced it was “moving away from its current Israel identity.”

The same press release announced that Adams “has chosen to step back from his day-to-day involvement and will no longer speak on behalf of the team.”

Contacted by L’Équipe, Tour organisers ASO refused to comment on Lang’s idea.