MONTREAL - Nearly 200 protesters gathered along the route of the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montr茅al on Sunday to oppose the participation of the Israel-Premier Tech cycling team in the race.
The demonstrators waved Palestinian flags and chanted 鈥淏oycott the Grand Prix, boycott IPT鈥 and 鈥渟olidarity with Palestine鈥 to the beat of drums.
Protesters gathered at the foot of Mount Royal along Avenue du Parc, where barriers lined the course. A large yellow sign planted in the grass read: 鈥淚srael-Premier Tech ambassador of genocide.鈥
A heavy police presence included officers on foot, on bicycles and even on horseback.
In a social media post, the groups Cyclists for Palestine, Palestinian and Jewish Unity (PAJU) and Divest for Palestine 鈥 who organized the demonstration 鈥 called on citizens to mobilize and urged event organizers and sponsors to 鈥渆xclude the team complicit in genocide from the Grands Prix in Quebec.鈥
The organizations accused Israel-Premier Tech of being 鈥渃omplicit with the genocidal entity鈥 and engaging in 鈥渟portswashing,鈥 a term used when an organization uses sports to improve its reputation and cover up its wrongdoings.
鈥淲e are whitewashing a genocide through a sports team, and we absolutely refuse to have our streets host a team that is whitewashing an ongoing genocide,鈥 said Safa Chebbi, a spokesperson for Divest For Palestine, at the protest site.
The three organizations stressed that Sunday鈥檚 demonstration was a 鈥渓ast resort鈥 to demand Israel-Premier Tech鈥檚 exclusion, noting they had already launched a petition, published an open letter and appealed to municipal authorities in the cities hosting the Grand Prix.
鈥淕overnments and all public institutions aren鈥檛 listening to this message. Yet I think it鈥檚 important to point out that when it came to the Russian team after the invasion of Ukraine, action was taken quickly,鈥 Chebbi said. 鈥淣ow it鈥檚 been two years of a genocide recognized by many international organizations, and yet there is difficulty in making this kind of decision.”
A large group of protesters gathered outside the event鈥檚 official hotel in downtown Montreal on Saturday night.
On Friday, a handful of pro-Palestinian demonstrators also protested at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec race in Quebec City.
Protests against Israel-Premier Tech have also taken place in recent weeks at the Spanish Vuelta, which led the team to remove any reference to Israel from its jerseys.
While several Vuelta stages were cut short due to protests, riders completed every lap in Montreal.
American cyclist Brandon McNulty won the race after UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammate Tadej Pogacar, a four-time Tour de France winner, let him cross the finish line first.
Israel-Premier Tech is co-owned by Canadian-Israeli businessman Sylvan Adams. He has previously described the riders as ambassadors for Israel, but the team has since referred to itself as simply a 鈥減rofessional cycling team鈥 in response to protests.
Earlier in September, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his support for Adams, praising his refusal to withdraw the team from sporting events despite protests.
For Karim, a protester who declined to give his last name, IPT鈥檚 presence at the Grand Prix represented 鈥渁 major denial of democracy鈥 as organizations had reached out to municipal and sports authorities to demand the team鈥檚 exclusion.
鈥淎s an immigrant here, I want to feel that I鈥檓 not complicit in the Canadian genocide that continues today in Palestine, and that my money isn鈥檛 going to finance genocide, because Canada arms Israel,鈥 he said. 鈥淲e want a boycott movement because we want peace.鈥
Julie Lambert said she joined the protest because she feels a deep sense of helplessness regarding the war in Gaza.
鈥淭his is the only thing we can do. It鈥檚 so horrific. How far is it going to go? Each time new limits are crossed, and being here is about showing solidarity with Palestine and with humanity,鈥 she said.
Israel-Premier Tech’s team at the Vuelta includes Canadian rider Pier-Andr茅 C么t茅. Other Canadian riders on the IPT roster include Michael Woods, Hugo Houle, Guillaume Boivin, Riley Pickrell and Derek Gee, who is currently in a contract dispute with the team. Former Canadian star Steve Bauer is the team鈥檚 sporting manager.
The team’s title sponsor, Premier Tech, is based in Rivi猫re-du-Loup, Que.
Houle was the top Canadian on Sunday, finishing 44th.
鈥 With files from Patrice Bergeron
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2025.
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