"This was not a protest. this was organized crime" – Intermarche – Wanty rider Bonneu rips into Vuelta a Espana protests

The 2025 Vuelta a España will be remembered for both its disrupted stages and its unusual finale, abandoned in Madrid due to protests. The fallout has divided opinion across the peloton. Some riders have defended the demonstrations on the basis of freedom of expression, while others have voiced their frustration at the impact on competition and safety.

Intermarché – Wanty rider Kamiel Bonneu, who completed the entire three weeks, was blunt in his assessment. “This was not a protest, this was organized crime. If you’re aim is peace do it peacefully,” he wrote on Twitter. His words captured the anger of those who felt the race was hijacked, not only preventing a fair sporting contest but also putting riders and fans at risk. For Bonneu and others, there is a distinction between voicing political concerns and actively shutting down a professional sporting event.

Others in the peloton have struck a more nuanced tone, acknowledging the right to demonstrate while lamenting the consequences. With cycling’s accessibility, free to watch on open roads, often in urban centres, the sport is especially vulnerable to such actions. That openness, celebrated by fans, has now become the focus of debate: how to protect both freedom of speech and the integrity of competition.

On a different note, João Almeida, who finished second overall behind Jonas Vingegaard, reflected on the race with pride despite its chaotic backdrop. “We can be proud of our race. We leave the Vuelta with a lot of success and we did what we could. It was a weird Vuelta, because the decisive stages that we expected to decide the race, did not end up being too decisive,” he said.

Almeida pointed to the unpredictability of how the racing played out. “The day with the most time gaps was in theory, on the easiest climb on stage 9. We just made it really hard and the time gaps were super big, so it shows that it is the riders who make the race hard, not the parcours.” Even in a disrupted edition, the UAE Team Emirates rider saw reasons to be encouraged. “But I think we can be really proud of the last three weeks, it was a really hard Vuelta.”