'I don't like being attacked' - Sylvan Adams evasive on Israel-Premier Tech name change

In a statement this week, Canadian company Premier Tech said: “The current team name is no longer viable for achieving our goals, the very reason for our involvement in cycling.” Bike supplier Factor told Cyclingnews that its sponsorship would become untenable without a change in team name. Escape Collective has reported that the team is now holding internal discussions on changing the team’s “identity and branding.”

The announcements from Premier Tech and Factor came in the wake of the Vuelta a España, where Israel-Premier Tech’s presence was the subject of repeated protests from human rights protestors.

Gran Canaria has indicated that it will not host the 2026 Vuelta if Israel-Premier Tech are present, while the city council of Barcelona – site of the Grand Départ of next year’s Tour de France – has also called for the team’s exclusion.

Adams is currently at the World Championships in Rwanda, where he has co-funded the construction of a BMX facility in Bugesera. When approached by Het Nieuwsblad reporter Jan-Pieter De Vlieger at the facility’s launch event, the Canadian-Israeli businessman refused to address the statements from Premier Tech and Factor.

“The team has issued a statement, which speaks for itself. I can’t add anything to it,” said Adams, who also refused to comment on the pro-Palestine protests that led to repeated interruptions to the Vuelta, including the cancellation of the final stage.

Earlier this week, an Israel-Premier Tech spokesperson told Radio Canada that the team “is in the planning phase for its 2026 branding and will communicate any potential changes in due course.” 

At the presentation in Bugesera, Adams told Het Nieuwsblad that his interest in the country stemmed from parallels he saw with the history of Israel. “We both lived through genocide, a word that was unfortunately invented after the Shoah,” he said.

Adams reportedly paused when asked his thoughts on the United Nations using the term ‘genocide’ to describe Israel’s ongoing actions in Gaza. More than 65,400 people, most of them civilians, have been killed since Israel invaded Gaza in response to the October 7 terrorist attacks, which killed more than 1,000 people.

“In 1948, when the State of Israel was founded, there were 60,000 Arabs in Gaza. Today there are 1.8 million,” Adams said. “The Jewish population hasn’t yet returned to its 1938 level. The numbers speak for themselves.”

Het Nieuwsblad reported that Adams’ communications staff were “less than pleased with his response,” while the Israel-Premier Tech owner was heard to complain: “I don’t like being attacked.” 

On Wednesday, meanwhile, Bologna’s city council called for Israel-Premier Tech’s exclusion from the Giro dell’Emilia, which takes place on October 4.

“We are opposed to the participation of an Israeli team in the Giro dell’Emilia at a time like this, when the Israeli government is committing serious crimes against the civilian population in the Gaza Strip,” said Roberta Li Calzi, Bologna’s councillor for sport.

Giro dell’Emilia organiser Adriano Amici has declined to withdraw the invitation to the team. 

“It’s not up to me to exclude the Israeli team, but rather the UCI, which, when it sees certain things, communicates that it is better for that team not to compete,” Amici told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “We invite the best teams in the world. My position becomes difficult because I am basically obliged to invite the best teams and riders.”