Movistar rider Javier Romo was able to complete stage 15 of the Vuelta a España despite suffering a heavy fall caused indirectly by a pro-Palestine protestor running towards the road, but as teammate Carlos Canal told reporters after the finish, "hopefully it's not too bad because we need him a lot."
After completing the stage, some 14 minutes down, Romo did not talk to the press at the finish, heading straight inside the Movitar team bus to have medics look over his injuries.
However, photos at the finish of Romo's large scrape on his left hip and other cuts and bruises spoke volumes about what had happened, and Canal - present with Romo in the large break of the day when the incident happened, but not a direct spectator - was later able to provide some more details of the consequences.
The crash occurred as the race was running through a wooded area with few spectators, approximately 60 kilometres from the finish line. A pro-Palestine protestor, carrying a flag, ran down a grass bank and attempted to reach the road, but fell heavily just as he came to the edge of the tarmac.
Romo and another rider, who was apparently uninjured, moved their bikes abruptly when they saw the protestor approaching fast, and their sudden action caused the two to fall.
This is the second time that a rider has crashed as a result of roadside pro-Palestine protestors in the Vuelta, with Simone Petilli (Intermarché-Wanty) also falling heavily on stage 10 after demonstrators ran into the middle of a speeding peloton.
This time round, the protestor was later arrested, along with other demonstrators, El País reported, who had placed themselves a little further along the road.
At the finish in Monforte de Lemos, police erected a double barrier on one sharp left-hand corner in the last kilometre to try to prevent numerous pro-Palestine protestors from spilling, intentionally or otherwise, into the road when the race passed them.
The Vuelta has been affected by numerous different protests by pro-Palestine demonstrators, unhappy with the presence of the Israel-Premier Tech squad in the race.
Multiple days have been disrupted, including the stage 5 team time trial in Figueres, where they were blocked during their ride. Then on stage 10 near Isaba, demonstrators ran in front of the peloton and - in a similar incident to stage 15's near-miss - caused Simone Petilli (Intermarché-Wanty) to crash.
"I think there was a person who came out of somewhere, and he wanted to get into the road, and he fell, just in front," Canal told the media at the finish about the latest incident.
"Romo was caught up in it. It was a nasty crash. I hope he's all right, he's just got on the bus, and we'll see how he is."
As for what actually happened, Canal said he didn't see it, being a little further back, but that he thought that "Romo's bike went from under him, he went on the ground, he's taken a big blow and let's hope he's able to get better."
"I haven't talked to him yet. I wanted to leave him be so he can recover. He's had a big blow, hopefully it's just a big scrape, although to tell the truth, he's in a lot of pain."
Stage 11 in Bilbao saw the height of the protests in the Basque Country, where the stage was neutralised by organisers 3km from the line, and the finale was cancelled due to safety concerns at the finish.
Protests continued on Friday's stage to the Angliru, with a smaller demonstration near the foot of the climb briefly delaying the breakaway.
On Saturday, it was announced that Israel-Premier Tech will race the remaining eight stages of the Vuelta a España without the word 'Israel' on their jerseys. The squad opted to change their kit mid-way through the race due to 'safety concerns', though the official team name will not be changed.
As for the latest incident and the fallout from Romo's crash, "He's a good resource, so just as well we have a rest day tomorrow [Monday]. Hopefully, he'll recover quickly and it's only scratches," Canal said.
"The doctors will see how he's doing and will look after him because we need him at 100 %.
Subscribe to Cyclingnews for unlimited access to our 2025 Vuelta a España coverage. Our team of journalists are on the ground from the Italian Gran Partida through to Madrid, bringing you breaking news, analysis, and more, from every stage of the Grand Tour as it happens. Find out more.
