Israel at the Olympics Persevering Against All Odds
By Randy Pinsky
In spite of it being a very challenging year with Hamas’ murderous attack and the ensuing war, Israel sent 88 athletes to the Paris 2024 Olympics; the second largest contingency in its history of competing. Representing a variety of sports including judo, gymnastics, sailing and diving, the small country has made its mark on the Olympic stage. What has been their historical experience? How are they faring in these difficult times? Many athletes have reinforced the need - now more than ever - to be present and to excel.
The world is watching and it will not be disappointed.
How It All Started
Israel’s first foray into the Olympics was at the 1952 Helsinki Games in Finland. The Eretz Yisrael Olympic Committee (now the National Olympics Committee of the State of Israel) was originally established in 1933 but refused to participate on principle in the 1936 Olympics in Nazi-controlled Berlin. The next two Olympics would be canceled due to the Second World War.
In 1948, the hope was to send two female athletes of the newly created state of Israel to the London Games (its fifty qualifying male athletes were serving in the military), however Israel’s request was denied by the International Olympic Committee, claiming it was not yet a member.
It would later be discovered that “the decision was aimed at preventing a boycott by the Arab nations after Egypt warned the IOC they would not compete if Israel were recognized.”
Israel would thus start its Olympic journey in 1952, initially as part of the Asian Games Federation (due to a refusal to be accepted by the committee of the Middle East region) and then the European Olympic Committee.
It would participate in every Winter Olympics since 1994 and all of the subsequent Summer Games with the exception of the 1980 Moscow Olympics when they joined the American boycott.
Collecting the Hardware
For such a small country, Israel is marked by some incredibly high performing athletes, leaving their mark on the Olympic stage. It has amassed eighty-two medals in its Olympic history - not bad for a country the size of New Jersey.
The largest Israeli delegation in a Summer Olympics was in the 2020 Tokyo Games, bringing together 90 athletes; compared to only three in Melbourne in 1956 due to the Sinai War. For comparison's sake, in the current Paris Olympics alone, the United States has 594 athletes, France has 572, Canada has 316 and China has 388.
Yael Arad won Israel's first Olympic medal in its 10th Olympic appearance in the 1992 Games in Barcelona. To date, she remains Israel’s only female medalist, earning a silver in judo, with judoka Oren Smadja winning bronze the following day. Arad now serves as the current President of the National Olympic Committee of Israel.
Israel has brought home a medal in every Games since 1992, boasting a bronze-winning streak between 1992-2008. The country would earn its first gold medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics with Gal Fridman in windsurfing.
In 2020, Israel made its Olympics baseball debut “after being ranked only 41st in the world in 2017”, winning the Africa/Europe Olympic qualifying tournament. That year, the country set its own record in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics when it came home with four medals; two gold (men’s gymnastics and women’s rhythmic gymnastics) and two bronze (taekwondo and judo mixed).
Interestingly, Israel has excelled more in the Paralympic Games, with 375 medals being won between 1960 and 2016.
More Than Just Sports
The Israeli team has also made headway in gender equality efforts, offering workshops and festivals in support of fitness, competitiveness, even sports leadership for girls, with a “Coaches of Tomorrow” program.
In 2019, the Olympic Committee of Israel welcomed five-time Olympic champion and Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneco, Honorary President of the Romanian Olympic Committee, to lead the country’s annual women’s race, ‘The Life Run’, reinforcing the importance placed on female athletes and opportunities.
Against All Odds
Israel has seen some remarkable achievements in its Olympic history, such as Vered Borochovski excelling in the Athens 2004 swimming competition in spite of having to compete without goggles due to a strap malfunction. Sailor Yoel Sela and rifle shooter Guy Starik additionally, currently hold the Israeli record for Olympic participation, having each competed in four Games.
Religion has also been a critical factor in the Israeli experience: in the Seoul 1988 Games, sailors Yoel Sela and Eldad Amir forfeited possible medals due to the race conflicting with Yom Kippur. High-ranking boxer Yehuda Ben-Haim was confronted with the same challenge that year.
When artistic gymnast, Artem Dolgopyat won Israel’s second gold medal in 2020, then-Prime Minister Naflati Bennett said, “You have made blue and white history…how we have waited to see the Israeli flag raised and to hear Hatikvah [Israel's national anthem] sung in the competition in Tokyo!”
The Darkest Day in Olympic History
In 1972, a group of Palestinian terrorists infiltrated the Olympic village and took eleven Israeli athletes and coaches hostage, murdering all.
Using claims of neutrality and the excuse of staying apolitical, the International Olympic Committee repeatedly refused to publicly acknowledge the attack until a full forty-four years later at the 2016 Rio Olympics when they officially honored the Israelis killed for the first time (see “Getting to That Moment of Silence: Remembering the Munich Massacre”).
In September 2018, the Olympic Committee of Israel held the 46th annual ceremony in the victims’ memory, where track and field athlete Esther Rot Shahamorov and swimmer Shlomit Nir Tor - both from the 1972 Israeli delegation - laid a wreath at a monument in their honor. Extensive lobbying moreover, resulted in a moment of silence being held during the Opening Ceremonies of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Only then could the families feel there was finally some measure of justice and closure.
Politics Overshadowing Sport
In spite of its emphasis on respect and integrity, the Olympics have never been exempt from politics.
There have been numerous occasions in which Israel has been the recipient of athletes pulling politics over play. Whether for personal reasons (such as claims to be in support of the Palestinians) or being pressured by their governments, athletes have forfeited matches or deliberately disqualified themselves to avoid having to compete against an Israeli contender.
At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Israeli judoka Or Sasson offered his hand to the defeated Egyptian Islam El Shehaby in the customary handshake, only to be rebuffed. An immediate outcry of boos from the audience followed, prompting discussions about politics and intolerance at the Olympics.
IOC spokesman Mark Adams said, “We believe that the Olympic spirit should be about building bridges, never about erecting walls …we remind all competitors of [the] Olympic values.”
Four years later, when Algerian judoka Fethi Nourine withdrew from the Olympics to avoid competing against his Israeli opponent Tohar Boutbul, the International Judo Federation instated a ten-year ban against him, claiming he “[used the Games] as a platform for protest and promotion of political and religious propaganda” thereby breaching the code of ethics and the Olympic Charter.
An Altercation on a Bus
In 2016, Israeli athletes were denied entry onto a shared bus with Lebanese athletes who refused to let them on.
The Israelis ultimately agree to travel separately “to avoid an international and physical incident.” Israeli Olympic sailing coach Udi Gla, however, stated, “how could they let this happen on the eve of the Olympic Games? Isn't this the opposite of what the Olympics represents?...I’m enraged and shocked by this event.”
He continued, “We are here as a delegation of athletes, here to represent our nation through sports, not politics…this shameful incident has only motivated us [more].” The IOC warned the Lebanese team that any further such altercations would not be tolerated.
It’s Complicated…
The Olympics have viewed several instances of politically-motivated acts which have resulted in athletes throwing a game due to political pressure or to make a statement. When Iranian judoka and former world champion Saeid Mollaei forfeited a match against an Israeli in 2020, he was charged with being unOlympian and he and his country were given a four-year judo ban (eventually overruled).
While many believe these are individual decisions, the athletes are often ordered to throw matches by the political leaders of their countries. Overwhelmed by the demands on his integrity as an athlete, Mollaei left his team during the World Championship in Tokyo. He refused to return to Iran and instead sought asylum in Germany, eventually switching allegiances to Mongolia and competing against Israel in 2021.
When in Israel, Mollaei shared, “I no longer compete for Iran. That part is over for me…I’ve always been a sportsman. I’ve never engaged in politics,” demonstrating that much of the forfeiting was due to national coercion from authorities.
Yael Arad, chief of the Israeli Olympic Committee and Israel’s first medalist commented, “my heart goes to…athlete[s in these situations]. I’m sure it’s not [their] decision…the athlete is a victim of the system.”
Paris 2024
The Israeli and international Jewish communities have been keenly watching the Paris Olympics. From threats being levelled against Israeli athletes in the days leading up to the Games, to gold winner judoka and survivor of the October 7th massacre wearing the name of his friend and the date 10-07-2024 on his keigogi robe, winning in his memory, to yet another judoka refusing to shake his Israeli contender’s hand. Many had vocal opinions on this act when the athlete later fell, dislocating his shoulder, with i24news dryly reporting, “[this] prevent[ed] him from shaking anyone’s hand, even if he had wanted to.”
In spite of all the challenges, the international pressures, protests and attempts at psychological intimidation, the Israeli athletes have persevered at the Paris Olympics, demonstrating their athletic prowess and determination. "We prepared our athletes for any kind of provocation," said Arad. "The main message that we gave them is that we're here to compete, to show the Israeli spirit." And that, they certainly have.
