Freed Hamas captive Ofer Kalderon joined the final stage of the 2025 Tour de France in Paris on Sunday as the special guest of the Israeli cycling team, Israel-Premier Tech (IPT).
Kalderon, 54, a dual Israeli-French citizen, was abducted from Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7, 2023, along with his son Erez, 12, and daughter, Sahar, 16. The children were among the 105 captives freed in November 2023 as part of a ceasefire agreement.
Kalderon was freed on Feb. 1 alongside former captives Yarden Bibas and Keith Siegel after 484 days in Hamas captivity, as part of a ceasefire agreement that saw the release of 25 living Israelis and the bodies of eight hostages.
“I’m still in shock that I’m here on a bike at the Tour de France. I’ve never been to Paris, certainly not on a bicycle. Everything looks so big to me... so wide... so many people... everything is a lot. I’m so emotional to be here with the team,” said Kalderon.
“But I’m also torn: this joy can’t be complete because, alongside all these emotions, it’s very hard to deal with what’s happening to me and to all the people of Israel—that we still have hostages in Gaza, our soldiers are there, and some are being killed. So nothing will be complete until they’re all back home. It’s time to end this story and bring everyone back,” he added.
On the same day, French police were seen tearing down a banner reading “Free the Hostages” at the Tour.
While Kalderon was still a hostage, solidarity rides took place all over Israel, including a mass solidarity ride at Tel Aviv’s Sylvan Adams National Velodrome in January 2024, during which IPT owner Sylvan Adams rode alongside Kalderon’s son Erez.
Another ride took place on Oct. 6, 2024, ahead of the first anniversary of the massacre, while Kalderon was still a hostage. Cyclists gathered in southern Israel to commemorate 10 riders slaughtered by Palestinian terrorists during the invasion and call for Kalderon’s release.
“We promised Erez and Ofer that he would join us at the Tour. And now it happened. It’s hard to believe. It’s so symbolic. It’s so special. Here he is beside us,” said Adams.
“You have no idea how emotional we all are to have fulfilled this promise. For us, this is a victory. But we have to say: without all the hostages coming home, it’s not a full victory. And that’s also why we brought Ofer to this enormous stage. To call for that from here,” Adams told Kalderon.
Eyal Kalderon, Ofer’s cousin, told JNS on Monday: “Ofer’s photo is a victory for himself, for us as a family who fought to bring him back and for a country which cherishes life.
“But the absolute victory will be reached only when the 50 remaining hostages will be brought back to us, until then it can only be a partial victory,” Eyal Kalderon said.
IPT was competing for the sixth consecutive time in the Tour de France, its 112th edition.
This year’s Tour began in Lille on July 5 and includes 21 stages for a total of 2,075 miles (3,338.8 km.).
Last year, Adams invited two survivors of the Hamas massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri to the opening of the Tour in Florence.
