Israel PT cycling team to 'rename and rebrand' after protests

They became focus for pro-Palestinian protests at several races

PARIS:

The Israel-Premier Tech cycling team, which was beset by protests against its participation in cycling races, said on Monday that it was changing its name to move away from an "Israeli identity".

"The decision has been made to rename and rebrand the team, moving away from its current Israeli identity," the team owned by Canadian-Israeli billionaire Sylvan Adams said in a statement, which added that the owner would "step back" from the team.

Israel PT has been targeted by pro-Palestinian protesters at several races recently, with various stages of the Vuelta a Espana grand tour disrupted by demonstrators last month.

"Looking ahead to the 2026 season, Sylvan Adams has chosen to step back from his day-to-day involvement and will no longer speak on behalf of the team, instead focusing on his role as President of the World Jewish Congress, Israel," the team said.

Although the team is privately-owned rather than state-run, Adams has dubbed himself an unofficial ambassador for the country, which is at war with Palestinian armed group Hamas in Gaza.

The Vuelta was massively disrupted by protesters with even the Spanish government -- which has accused Israel of genocide in Gaza -- urging organisers to eject Israel-Premier Tech to put an end to the chaos, which forced several stages to be shortened or neutralised.

Protesters also caused two riders to crash during the three-week-long tour.

And there were isolated protests during the sport's other two grand tours, the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France.

Both the Vuelta's organisers, Unipublic, and the International Cycling Union (UCI) refused to kick out Israel PT but were powerless to prevent protester disruptions given the nature of road cycling taking place out in the open along courses that run for 200 kilometres or more.

Israel PT even removed the name Israel from the team's jerseys during the Vuelta to try to provide a less visible target for demonstrators.

But since then, the pressure has mounted on the team to find a solution to continue racing safely.

The team's main sponsor, the Canadian multi-national Premier Tech, called for them to "evolve to a new name excluding the term Israel, and that it will adopt a new identity and a new brand image".

And organisers of last week's Giro dell'Emilia excluded Israel PT for "public security" reasons, with rumours that they will also be prevented from taking part at the prestigious Giro di Lombardia monument race this weekend in Italy.