The former Astana leader, whose decorated palmar\u00e8s includes\u00a0the 2019 Li\u00e8ge-Bastogne-Li\u00e8ge and 2020 Il Lombardia, added that protests targeting Israel-Premier Tech at major races had not directly affected him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI actually didn\u2019t experience that. With or without Israel-Premier Tech at the start, there probably still would have been demonstrations. You also see climate protests during the Tour de France. These are big events with a lot of media attention. That said, it\u2019s better to ride without [the logo].\u201d<\/p>\n
>\u00a0“It’s better to follow your morals”: Former Israel-Premier Tech rider “relieved” to no longer represent team, urges cycling world “to show awareness of what’s going on in Gaza”<\/a><\/p>\n Fuglsang announced his retirement after riding the Giro d\u2019Italia in June after a string of successful years in the peloton, which besides the two monuments and the two Dauphin\u00e9 titles, have also included a stage win at Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a, GC wins at Tour of Denmark and Vuelta a Andaluc\u00eda, and a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.<\/p>\n He was recently praised by Danish legend and former Tour de France champion Bjarne Riis, who told Ekstra Bladet<\/a>: \u201cJakob is without a doubt very high on the list of Denmark\u2019s greatest riders. We\u2019re saying goodbye to a truly outstanding rider. He\u2019s been consistent over many years and delivered some major results.\u201d<\/p>\n More praise came from Mads Pedersen before the final stage of Tour of Denmark, where Fuglsang officially bowed out of pro cycling earlier this month with a brave breakaway ride, as the Dane said: \u201cI think we can all agree that Jakob is one of the greatest Danish riders we\u2019ve ever had.\u201d<\/p>\n >\u00a0Israel-Premier Tech cycling team face more protests at Tour Down Under as campaigners call for “no sport with apartheid”\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Fuglsang\u2019s comments follow those of former teammate Alessandro De Marchi, who just weeks ago said that he was \u201chappy and relieved\u201d not to represent Israel-Premier Tech<\/a> and argued that it was \u201cbetter to follow your morals.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to see real action from our governing body to position the cycling world on the right side and to show awareness of what’s going on in Gaza,\u201d De Marchi, who\u2019s also retiring at the end of this season, told The Observer<\/a>.\u00a0\u201cWe have to show that as a cycling world we care about human rights and international law violations.\u201d<\/p>\n De Marchi\u2019s interview came in the aftermath of a protest at the Tour de France, when an Extinction Rebellion activist stormed the finish straight of stage eleven in Toulouse<\/a> wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the slogans \u201cIsrael out of the Tour,\u201d \u201cStop Genocide,\u201d and \u201cFree Gaza.\u201d<\/p>\n The demonstrator, waving Palestinian flags and wearing a keffiyeh, was tackled into the barriers by organisers just as Jonas Abrahamsen and Mauro Schmid sprinted for the line. A woman in the crowd was also seriously injured in the incident.<\/p>\n >\u00a0Extinction Rebellion protester disrupts Tour de France sprint finish wearing \u201cIsrael out of the Tour\u201d shirt<\/a><\/p>\n XR Toulouse claimed the action was carried out \u201cto denounce Tour de France\u2019s complicity in the genocide\u201d and accused the race of \u201chelping restore the image of the Israeli colonial regime\u201d by allowing IPT to participate. The group declared: \u201cNeutrality does not exist. Not acting in a situation of oppression is like taking the side of the oppressor.\u201d<\/p>\n Israel-Premier Tech responded at the time by saying it \u201crespects everyone\u2019s right to free speech\u201d but \u201cabsolutely condemns any protests or actions of individuals that interfere with racing at the Tour de France or threaten the safety of the peloton.\u201d<\/p>\n While the Tour de France protest marked the most high-profile incident of its kind, it was by no means the first. At the Giro d\u2019Italia in Naples, pro-Palestine activists ran into the road in front of a charging peloton<\/a>.<\/p>\n At the 2024 Tour of Britain, campaigners confronted team staff at multiple stages<\/a>, accusing the squad of \u201csportswashing\u201d Israel\u2019s reputation. Protests were also seen at the Tour Down Under in Australia<\/a>.<\/p>\n The team itself quietly removed the word \u201cIsrael\u201d from its vehicles and training kit<\/a> in March 2024, replacing it with a monogram of the Star of David and \u201cPT\u201d logo, though it insisted it continued to \u201crace proudly as Israel-Premier Tech.\u201d<\/p>\n Criticism has also often focused on Sylvan Adams, the Canadian-Israeli billionaire who co-owns the team. Adams has long described IPT as \u201cambassadors\u201d for Israel and has invested millions in sports events, including the 2018 Giro d\u2019Italia Grande Partenza from Jerusalem.<\/p>\n Adams has also faced condemnation for remarks to Israeli media in which he said the Israel Defence Force \u201cneeds to finish the job\u201d in Gaza and to \u201cmop up,\u201d comments widely criticised by campaigners as showing disregard for civilian suffering.<\/p>\n >\u00a0Israel-Premier Tech cycling team confronted by pro-Palestine group at Tour of Britain, with more protests planned this week<\/a><\/p>\n Critics of IPT have argued that its presence in cycling is starkly at odds with the destruction of Palestinian sport. Two weeks ago, the Guardian<\/a> reported that Suleiman al-Obeid, the \u201cPalestinian Pel\u00e9,\u201d was killed by Israeli forces while waiting for humanitarian aid in southern Gaza. The Palestine Football Association said at least 662 sportspeople and relatives had been killed since the Israeli attacks began, including 421 footballers, and that 288 sports facilities had been destroyed.<\/p>\n Last month, Israel\u2019s own B\u2019Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights-Israel said the assault in Gaza amounted to genocide<\/a>, citing the targeting of civilians \u201conly because of their identity as Palestinians,\u201d mass forced displacement, starvation and the destruction of essential infrastructure. Amnesty International, M\u00e9decins Sans Fronti\u00e8res and UN-appointed experts have reached similar conclusions.<\/p>\n![\"Jakob](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/jakob-fuglsang-2019-criterium-du-dauphine.JPG\" "\\"Jakob")
Jakob Fuglsang, 2019 Criterium du Dauphine.JPG (credit: Zac Williams\/SWpix.com)<\/p>\n![\"Tour](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1000030075.jpg\" "\\"Tour")
Tour de France stage 11 protester (credit: Ryan Mallon)<\/p>\n![\"Anti-Israel](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/zw106101.jpg\" "\\"Anti-Israel")
Anti-Israel protester runs onto road during sprint finish, 2025 Tour de France, stage 11, Toulouse (credit: Zac Williams\/SWpix.com)<\/p>\n![\"Pro-Palestine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/pro-palestine-protesters-tour-britain-sept-2024-1.jpg\" "\\"Pro-Palestine")
Pro-Palestine protesters at Tour of Britain Sept 2024 (Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign) (credit: road.cc)<\/p>\n