Vuelta protests ‘a completely new phenomenon’, says Tour de France director

Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme said Tuesday the pro-Palestine protests which resulted in the disruption of several stages of this season’s Vuelta a Espana were “a completely new phenomenon”.

The 2025 edition was interrupted by protests, including the final stage in Madrid on Sunday, where the race was stopped more than 50 kilometres from the end.

An estimated 100,000 people took to the streets of the capital to protest against Israel’s actions in Gaza and the participation of the Israeli PT team in the race.

Speaking at the French embassy in Berlin to mark the release of a book on the Tour de France, Prudhomme said that road cycling races have always been subject to the “ups and downs” of life.

“Brigands attacked Tour riders in the 1920s,” he said. 

“It’s always been like that. When we go somewhere, factories always close, and negotiations are necessary. We know this fragility, it’s obvious.”

“(But) the strength of these races is usually precisely that people prefer them not to be disrupted. This is a new phenomenon.”

Prudhomme also said the Tour was increasingly likely to return to Germany, with Dresden in 2030 a potential starting point to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the country’s reunification. 

The director said Germany is important “generally, economically, culturally for the Tour”, adding “you can’t just dismiss a German bid.”

The Tour de France has started in Germany four times in its 122-year history.