Fifty-four years after 11 members of Israel’s Olympic delegation were murdered by Palestinian terrorists at the 1972 Munich Games, Israel gathered Monday evening to honor their memory and reaffirm a commitment to carrying their legacy forward through sport.
The 54th annual memorial ceremony for the Munich 11 was held at the Yud-Alef Square in Tel Aviv-Jaffa, as it is every year, with Olympic medalist Arik Zeevi serving as master of ceremonies. Family members of the victims joined athletes, coaches, judges and representatives of Israel’s sporting community, as well as senior government and municipal officials.
Among those attending were Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar, Israel Olympic Committee President Yael Arad, IOC member and Olympic Committee Director General Adi Bichman, Tel Aviv-Jaffa Deputy Mayor Guy Daniel Avner, German Deputy Ambassador to Israel Helena Marks and representatives of the Munich victims’ families.
The ceremony came as Israel continues to face a prolonged security campaign on multiple fronts and as Israeli athletes confront an increasingly complicated international sporting environment. At the same time, Israeli sports officials noted the significant support and solidarity the country continues to receive from leading international sporting organizations.
For Arad, the president of the Israel Olympic Committee, remembering the Munich 11 is not simply an annual act of commemoration, but an ongoing responsibility.
‘Our presence at every competition and on every international stage is more important than ever’
“Fifty-four years have passed, and we continue to remember and remind the world of the 11 members of the Israeli delegation who were brutally murdered in Munich,” Arad said. “Their memory is carried in the hearts of our athletes at every competition and every time the Israeli flag is proudly raised.”
Arad also linked the legacy of the Munich victims to the challenges facing Israeli athletes today.
“At a time when antisemitism and delegitimization of Israel have also entered the world of sport, our presence at every competition and on every international stage is more important than ever,” she said.
While acknowledging the challenges facing Israel, Arad stressed that the country is not alone.
“Alongside our enemies, we also have many friends, more than we are sometimes aware of, courageous people, who stand with us,” she said. “We must continue to confront both through sporting excellence and through the diplomatic arena in which we at the Olympic Committee work every day.”
“The Israeli athletes are a national consensus and exceptional ambassadors for Israel, for the Israeli spirit and for world Jewry,” Arad added.
An enduring part of Israeli sports history
Zohar similarly portrayed the Munich 11 as an enduring part of Israeli sports history while drawing a direct connection between their experience and the pressures facing Israeli athletes today.
“The memory of the 11 members of the Israeli delegation to Munich who were murdered because they were Jews accompanies Israeli sport and will always accompany us,” Zohar said.
“Even today, there are those who seek to keep Israel out of sporting arenas around the world through boycotts, threats, hatred and antisemitism. We will not allow that to happen.”
“We will not bow our heads, and we will not give up the place our athletes deserve on every international stage,” he continued. “We will stand beside them, fight for them in every institution and federation, and continue to compete, win and proudly raise the Israeli flag wherever we are in the world.”
The tragedy being remembered dates to Sept. 5, 1972, when members of the Black September terrorist organization broke into the Israeli delegation’s quarters in the Olympic Village in Munich. Eleven members of the delegation were ultimately murdered in one of the most notorious terrorist attacks in the history of the Olympic Games and the greatest tragedy in the history of Israeli sport.
The victims were David Berger, Yossef Gutfreund, Moshe Weinberg, Eliezer Halfin, Mark Slavin, Ze’ev Friedman, Yossef Romano, Kehat Shorr, Andre Spitzer, Amitzur Shapira and Yaakov Springer.
A German police officer, Anton Fliegerbauer, was also killed during the failed rescue operation.
Tel Aviv-Jaffa Deputy Mayor Guy Daniel Avner emphasized the broader role of sport in Israeli society and the symbolism of the Munich tragedy.
“Sport is a significant part of the life and fabric of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and I see it as a supreme value,” Avner said. “We must continue to give sport the place it deserves, not only as a means of promoting health, but also as a tool for education, bringing people together and building a stronger and healthier society.”
“The athletes in Munich did not go to war. They went to do what they loved, to represent the State of Israel at one of the largest and most important sporting events in the world,” he said.
“Terror entered a place that was supposed to be a symbol of peace, brotherhood and fair competition between nations. The fight against terrorism is a fight for life itself, and our response must be life, action, unity and continuing forward.”
Germany’s Deputy Ambassador to Israel, Helena Marks, also addressed the ceremony, emphasizing the continuing relevance of the Munich tragedy.
“Today we remember the victims who were murdered at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich,” Marks said. “The memory of the 11 Israeli athletes and the German police officer, Anton Fliegerbauer, who fell victim to these despicable acts of terror, reminds us that extremism poses a real threat.”
Marks said the message was particularly important at a time when antisemitic hatred and violence are increasing around the world.
“This is especially significant at a time when antisemitic hatred and violence are increasing around the world,” she said. “These trends also threaten the democracies in our countries. Honoring the memory of the victims, confronting extremism and protecting our democracies are responsibilities that we all share.”
During the ceremony, memorial candles were lit by members and representatives of the victims’ families, including Shelley Shaltiel on behalf of the Halfin family; Mika, the daughter of Mark Slavin; Ze’ev Friedman’s grandchildren; Doris Vecht Nicolau, the niece of Andre Spitzer; Uri Afek on behalf of the Weinberg family; Adi Shorr and his great-grandchildren Omri and Ilay on behalf of the Shorr family; representatives of the Shapira family; and Adi and Alon, the grandchildren of Yossef Romano.
Oshrat Romano-Kandel, representing the families of the Munich 11, called on Israel’s sporting community to continue looking ahead while preserving the memory of those who were lost.
“Continue moving forward with full force toward the next Olympics while preserving the memory of our loved ones,” she said. “We know that this is not an easy task, but it is necessary. They deserve it, and without history there is no future. We will always demand that they be commemorated.”
The ceremony also featured the laying of wreaths representing different generations of Israeli sport. Olympic walker Shaul Adani and swimmer Shlomit Nir-Tur placed the wreath of the Munich delegation, while Olympic athletes Ariel Nasi and Gashau Ayala placed the Olympic athletes’ wreath. Tamar Orchan and Netanel Peleg represented Israel’s Academy for Excellence in Sport.
For the current generation of Israeli Olympians, the Munich 11 represent not only a painful chapter in the country’s history but a responsibility to continue competing on the world stage.
“As Olympic athletes and successors to the Munich 11, it is our duty and responsibility to carry their memory with us at every training session, every competition and on every stage,” Nasi and Ayala said.
“The legacy of the 11 is an inseparable part of the story of the State of Israel and of the Israeli Olympic story that we continue to write.”
The athletes pledged to transform the tragedy’s legacy through sporting achievement.
“We are committed to dulling the black stain left by the massacre with bronze, silver and gold medals, with Israeli flags flying at competitions around the world and with the singing of ‘Hatikvah’ on the winners’ podium,” they said.
“We will continue to represent the State of Israel with pride, to prove that nothing can break our spirit, and to continue the path and legacy of the Munich 11.”
The annual ceremony is organized jointly by the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Sports Authority and the Israel Olympic Committee, ensuring that more than five decades after the Munich massacre, the names and legacy of the 11 remain an enduring part of Israel’s sporting history.
