VIDEO | Shocking images as dozens of protestors try to break through barriers and endanger La Vuelta peloton

The 2025 Vuelta a Espana is being marked not by racing but instead by the events that have been taking place outside of the fight for the overall classification. Today's 11th stage was neutralized in the finale, as dozens of anti-Israel protestors tried to break through the barriers in the finishing straight seconds before the peloton rode through the finish line in Bilbao.

This was an event that could unfortunately be foreseen as in the previous stages there have been protests against the team - although they more often interfered with other riders, and have led to crashes. In the Basque Country, there is a very strong sentiment against Israel's current actions in Gaza, where over 60.000 civilians have been killed over the past two years. Israel - Premier Tech's presence in the race has been heavily contested, and this morning there was a meeting between riders of each team to discuss the situation, and it has been rumoured that behind the scenes there is currently pressure being put in the team to leave the race voluntarily. This is set to only increase in the coming days.

On the Alto del Vivero there was road block, but at slow speed it wasn't endangering the riders - although Tom Pidcock had to ride through a flag. But at the finish line in Bilbao, not seen in the TV broadcast, a heavy set of protestors tried to break through the barriers and invade the road at the same time as the peloton was about to ride through, at high speed and at almost full size. This was now only seen in spectator footage, as shown in the video below.

The impressive images see also a contingent of dozens of policemen and race staff miraculously keeping the barriers outside of the road allowing the peloton to pass without crashes, but as the riders would have to go through the same location once again - coinciding with the finish line - there was a very big risk of another event taking place, forcing organizers to neutralize the final kilometers as security could not be assured to the riders.