Spanish government hits back at UCI criticism over Vuelta protests
The Spanish government has issued a forceful reply to the UCI after cycling’s governing body criticised Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in the wake of the pro-Palestine protests that repeatedly disrupted the Vuelta a España and ultimately forced the cancellation of Sunday’s final stage in Madrid.
In a letter addressed to UCI president David Lappartient and made public by the Consejo Superior de Deportes (CSD), the Spanish government’s autonomous agency for the promotion and development of sport, Spain bristled at the governing body’s intervention. It rejected Lappartient’s claim that Sánchez’s support for the demonstrations was contrary to Olympic values and insisted instead that neutrality itself had a limit, defending the right to protest as both a constitutional guarantee and a moral duty.
“We have learned, with deep dismay and surprise, of your statement regarding the 2025 Vuelta a España. In Spain, as in all democratic societies, the right to free and peaceful demonstration is a fundamental right, enshrined in our 1978 Constitution. Moreover, when the cause is a just and noble one in defense of Human Rights, that free and peaceful expression becomes a moral obligation. That is why, as the Prime Minister said yesterday, at the CSD we are very proud of the greatness of the Spanish people and their sensitivity toward situations that are profoundly unacceptable and intolerable.” the letter read.
The words landed as both defence and accusation. Sport, the CSD argued, cannot insulate itself from the world around it.
“There is no peace without justice and ‘whitewashing’ through sport a genocide such as the one being carried out in Gaza, with thousands of deaths, innocent boys and girls, and a famine already declared by the United Nations, this is indeed a political position that contravenes the Olympic Charter and the most basic values of sport.”
The UCI’s statement on Monday had gone further than questioning Sánchez’s stance. It suggested that Spain’s organisational credibility was compromised, casting a shadow over Barcelona’s Grand Départ of the 2026 Tour de France. Spain’s response reached for its own ledger of competence.
“You know perfectly well that in Spain we do things properly, with success and safety. The numerous international events we have already hosted and will continue to organise provide more than sufficient proof of the Spanish people’s ability. The recent European downhill cycling championships in La Molina, the 2018 Copa Libertadores final, the Formula 1 and MotoGP Grands Prix, yesterday’s Davis Cup tie against Denmark, or the upcoming 2030 World Cup with Portugal and Morocco, as well as so many other examples of good, serious, and efficient work, demonstrate our enormous organisational capacity, well known throughout Europe and the world.”
Yet perhaps the most stinging element of the CSD’s reply was not what it said about Spain, but about what the UCI had failed to say.
“It is surprising to note that your statement does not include at any time an explicit call on Netanyahu’s government to stop the massacre and barbarity being suffered by the people of Palestine. A reality that should compel action with the same forcefulness as in 2022 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
The exchange leaves cycling at an uneasy crossroads. For the UCI, the doctrine of political neutrality has long provided cover, invoked as much in silence as in speech. For the Spanish government, the Vuelta became a stage where neutrality seemed indistinguishable from complicity.
The question is whether cycling can still cling to its autonomy, or whether, like Madrid on Sunday, the road ahead will be blocked before the finish.
