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.
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