Vuelta a España director Javier Guillen has assured that, despite the latest wave of protests against Israel's actions in Gaza that led to the partial suspension of stage 16, the race will continue as planned to Madrid.

The Vuelta was interrupted before the scheduled finish line on two occasions by protesters protesting the presence of the Israel-Premier Tech team, both on stages 11 and 16 before the final climb to Castro de Herville. The protests intensified both inside and outside the race, with incidents of hacking the race radio and even an attempt to block the road with a felled tree trunk.

Guillen said at an emergency press conference. While acknowledging that what is happening in Gaza is "terrible" and that the protesters have the right to protest, he insisted that sport "serves to unite" and that blocking the stages is "illegal from both a criminal and sporting standpoint."

"We want to express our rejection of what happened today," Guillen added. "This is an unprecedented situation in the history of the Vuelta. It's not a crusade; we just want the race to take place as planned. We'll leave tomorrow and arrive in Madrid; I can't say anything else."

The situation remains tense, with approximately 1,000 protesters present at the finish line of stage 16 and approximately 150 crowding the road. Despite the growing difficulties, the organizers remain firm in their decision to continue the race to its natural conclusion in the Spanish capital.

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