Olympic Committee Says No to Munich Widows
No, Again: Olympic organizers again rejected the pleas of Ankie Spitzer and other widows for a moment of silence to remember the Munich massacre. Image by getty images
The International Olympic Committee has rejected an in-person appeal to hold a minute of silence at the London 2012 Opening Ceremonies in memory of 11 Israeli athletes murdered at the Munich 1972 Summer Games.
Widows of two of the athletes presented a request in person for the minute of silence to IOC President Jacques Rogge on Wednesday. The request came along with a petition with over 100,000 signatures. Rogge once again denied the request.
Rogge held a minute of silence in memory of the murdered athletes at a small ceremony Monday in the Olympic Village. The widows have said that that gesture was not sufficient.
“We are outraged by the denial of the request, which comes not only from us but from so many people around the world,” said Ankie Spitzer, one of the widows, in a statement. “Our husbands were murdered at the Olympics in Munich. To observe a minute of silence in their memory would let the world know where the IOC stands in the fight against terrorism.”
Organizers of the campaign for a minute of silence have called on attendees at the Opening Ceremonies on Friday to stand and hold their own minute of silence at the beginning of Rogge’s speech.
The campaign has drawn the support of numerous public figures, including President Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
