Israel-Premier Tech cycling team face more protests at Tour Down Under as campaigners call for "no sport with apartheid"

Israel-Premier Tech will race this week's Tour Down Under in Australia to the backdrop of more protests over their participation.

The team, aiming to defend British rider Stephen Williams' victory at the race last year, is aware of the protests and told road.cc this morning they "respect everyone's right to free speech", so the events "do not pose a problem".

A spokesperson explained that the team has "worked closely with the race organisers and relevant parties to ensure that any protests do not impact the race, nor our right to participate".

One such protest was arranged for Saturday's pre-Tour Down Under criterium in Adelaide and a further protest is planned by the Australian Friends of Palestine Association (AFOPA) when Friday's fourth stage finishes in Victor Harbor. On Saturday, away from the race, the Cyclists 4 Palestine group is also holding a protest in Sydney against the team's participation.

Protesters have claimed Israel-Premier Tech's presence at the race "breaches international law obligations to comprehensively sanction Israel" and demanded "Santos [the race's lead sponsor] and Australian Government to break sporting ties with apartheid Israel".

One of the groups planning protests, AFOPA, has told followers to avoid "obstructing or interfering" with the racing and has advised protesters to "stand back from the fence so that flags and placards do not stray over the fence putting cyclists at risk". The group also urged followers to "not interfere with the public's enjoyment of the event by blocking their view or by chanting".

Ahead of Saturday's criterium, AFOPA welcomed news of a ceasefire, but said it "is not enough".

"There must be an end to the occupation of the Palestinians and an end to Israel's apartheid regime," the group said in a statement. "We continue our demands on the Australian Government to sanction Israel and implement measures to force Israel to obey international law.

"This ceasefire is all the more reason for us to come together to rally and march in protest at the inclusion of the Israel-Premier Tech cycling team in the Tour Down Under."

Addressing the protests, an Israel-Premier Tech spokesperson today told road.cc: "Israel – Premier Tech respects everyone's right to free speech so the protests planned at the Tour Down Under do not pose a problem. We are excited to race in Adelaide and are motivated to achieve our goal of defending the race title. We have worked closely with the race organisers and relevant parties to ensure that any protests do not impact the race, nor our right to participate."

The team won last year's Tour Down Under with Welsh rider Williams, who also won the final stage to Mount Lofty. Despite their name, the squad racing in Australia this week has no Israeli athletes competing, the team consisting of British rider Williams, two Australians, two Canadians, and two riders from New Zealand.

It will not be the first time the team has faced protests at a race. At last year's Tour of Britain team staff were confronted by a pro-Palestine group.

Earlier in the season the team removed Israel's name from their team's vehicles as a "precautionary measure". The UCI ProTour team of Chris Froome and Michael Woods told us they "continue to race proudly as Israel – Premier Tech" but took the decision to replace explicit mention of Israel with an "IPT monogram, comprised of the Star of David and the Premier Tech 'PT', on the team vehicles and other branded elements".

The team referenced "a number of precautionary measures ahead of the 2024 season" which were taken to try to ensure rider safety amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, one such measure being that riders were given unmarked training kit in November.

In January 2024, the team's most famous rider, four-time Tour de France winner Froome appeared in a video posted on social media by Israel's Foreign Ministry and the official State of Israel to promote a cycling event to support Gaza hostages.