The Israel Premier Tech cycling team set off its fifth Tour de France on Saturday with calls to return the Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza back home as fast as possible.
Three injured IDF soldiers arrived to support the team in the world's biggest cycling race and stood at the starting line holding signs for the hostages, some of whom were their close friends, and calling for their release. Alongside them stood the Israeli team's owners, Sylvan Adams and Ron Baron.
"My friends from the kibbutz are rotting in there. We can't wait for even another moment," said Aviad Bachar who became one of the symbols of the great tragedy and resilience of Kibbutz Be'eri. Aviad lost his son and wife, who were murdered in the safe room of their home in Be'eri on the morning of October 7, while he suffered severe injuries and had his leg amputated.
Despite still adjusting to his prosthetic leg, Bachar insisted on riding his bike for the first time since his injury, leading the Israeli team in their final training session on Friday ahead of Saturday’s race. "It was a huge moment for me, one of the most moving I’ve had in my life," said Bachar, who used his presence at the Tour de France to call for the release of the hostages.
Joining him were his good friend Sharon Shabo, who was severely injured in a Hamas ambush while riding his bike, and 20-year-old Oded Gelbstein, a combat engineering soldier who was severely injured in Gaza and is currently undergoing rehabilitation in Florence.
The Tour de France will last three weeks, during which the riders will cover 3,400 km, finishing in Nice on July 21. The Israeli team hopes to achieve its fourth victory in the Tour. "Aviad and Sharon will be our great inspiration in the Tour de France," Sylvan Adams told the team before the race.