MADRID: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Sunday said pro-Palestinian protests that have rocked the Vuelta a Espana filled him with “pride” as large demonstrations await the race’s final stage in Madrid.

The protests, which have targeted the Israel-Premier Tech team over the devastating war in Gaza, have disrupted several stages of one of cycling’s three grand tours and cast doubt on whether the 21-day race could be completed.

The activism has forced some stages to be shortened and occasionally caused crashes as demonstrators burst onto the course, prompting criticism for threatening rider safety and harming Spain’s image. In his first public comments on the debate, Sanchez expressed his “recognition and full respect for the athletes, but also our admiration for people like Spain’s, which mobilizes for just causes, like Palestine.”

Spain “today shines as an example and as a source of pride, an example to an international community where it sees Spain taking a step forward in the defense of human rights,” he told a Socialist party gathering in Malaga. Several members of the leftist government have publicly supported the movement in a country where support for the Palestinian cause is strong.

The authorities have ramped up security for Sunday’s final stage in Madrid, which was slightly shortened and will see 1,100 police officers deploy in the Spanish capital. Protesters briefly breached reinforced security and attempted to block the road during the penultimate stage of the race in the Guadarrama mountains outside Madrid on Saturday, forcing cyclists to swerve around them.

The leader of the conservative opposition Popular Party, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, lashed out on X at the protest, which he said “gave such a shameful image.” “Instead of ministers encouraging it, the government should condemn, denounce and prevent it,” he added.