Remembering the Munich 11
(Statistics through March 20)
Top of the week: Brazilian and Israeli officials will lead a ceremony at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro honoring the 11 Israelis murdered by Palestinian terrorists at the Munich Olympics in 1972. The Aug. 14 ceremony at the Rio City Hall will feature the widows of weightlifter Yossef Romano, who was kidnapped, castrated, and murdered by the terrorists, and Andre Spitzer, a fencing coach, lighting 11 candles, according to the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper. The IOC had already announced a special area in the Olympic Village in Rio to commemorate the memory of Olympians who have died, including the Israeli athletes and coaches.
Record run: Despite an elevated risk of terrorist attacks, a record-setting 30,000 runners from 62 countries arrived at the starting line of the annual Jerusalem Marathon. Thousands of soldiers were deployed along the 26.2-mile route of the event to protect runners from possible attacks. Kpkosgei Shadrack, 25, from Kenya won the marathon in 2:16:33 — an improvement of nearly two minutes from the result of last year’s winner, Tadesse Yaee Dahbi of Ethiopia. Some 2,400 runners outside Israel registered for this year’s race, more than double the number last year and an all-time record both in terms of the number of countries represented and the number of foreign participants.
Best of the rest: Three Jewish players participated in the NCAA basketball tournament. Sam Singer was pressed into emergency duty as a starter for the California Golden Bears and responded with 12 points and five rebounds before fouling out in the team’s 77-66 loss to the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. Israeli import Roman Sorkin played seven bench minutes for the Oregon Ducks, scoring seven points with three rebounds and an assist in a 91-52 rout of the Holy Cross Crusaders. He did not appear in the Ducks’ 69-64 win over the St. Joseph’s Hawks. Sara Hattis and the Texas Longhorns beat the Alabama State Lady Hawks 86-42. She played five minutes, scoring two points and was on the court for just one minute (one rebound) in a 73-55 win over the Missouri Tigers. Texas advances to the Sweet Sixteen.
Born this week: Howard Cosell (March 25, 1918).
Sources: JTA, ESPN.com, Day by Day in Jewish Sports History
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