Some chaotic scenes at the Tour of Bruges on Wednesday, when a protester jumped in front of the peloton, causing several riders to go down.
The incident happened on the cobbled sector on Brieversweg.
A climate activist, the protester sat down on the stones as the bunch approached, forcing a reaction that rippled through the back of the field.
Around ten riders went down, including defending champion Juan Sebastián Molano. According to local reports, this was not the activist’s first rodeo, according to Sporza.
The protester was identified as Wouter Mouton. Wielerflits confirmed he’s a familiar figure in Belgium. In 2022, for example, he breached barriers during the finale of the Tour of Flanders in and jumped over the barriers behind riders including Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogačar.
As in previous protests, Mouton wore a white T-shirt carrying a climate message. It read, “kids dying by the climate crisis in 3, 2, 1.”
He was detained at the scene.
It’s confirmed that this lunatic activist caused a crash in Brugge today. Apparently he did it before and will do it again, if they release him after 12 hours. Jail or mental institution is the only way, he’s a public danger. https://t.co/xEoIKjlJi1#RondevanBrugge https://t.co/0YfXMiIQEo pic.twitter.com/zRjBdMzGkt
— Mihai Simion (@faustocoppi60) March 25, 2026
Race organizer Golazo said it plans to take legal action, calling the move dangerous and irresponsible. Other teams have also said they will be taking legal action against him.
Officials confirmed Mouton is being held for questioning, with witnesses and organizers involved in the investigation. According to Golazo, he intended to glue his hands to the cobbles before being stopped, or something.
Protests and disruptions are of course part of any democracy, but hopefully they shouldn’t be at the expense of the riders.
We’ve seen it quite a bit in 2025 (and historically) but it’s an issue that may continue to be an issue going forward. Last year, there were several protests against the team formerly known as Israel-Premier Tech, especially in Spain. Multiple stages at La Vuelta A España were cancelled or shortened. Eventually the team had to sit out several other races towards the end of the year. The team then rebranded to NSN Cycling and shed its Israeli identity.
Meanwhile, Dylan Groenewegen (Unibet Rose Rockets) took a big win for the Dutch squad. The women’s event is Thursday. There were no Canadians in the men’s…
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