A week before the 50th anniversary of the horrific massacre at the Munich Olympics, the sports hall was inaugurated today (Sunday) with the participation of the athletes' families and representatives of the municipality of Or Yehuda, the Toto, the Lottery, the Ministry of Culture and Sports and the Olympic Committee and Ilana Romano, the representative of the athletes' families.
The sports hall was established through the Or Yehuda Development Company, all of this near Yuval Middle School in the city on Sderot Eliyahu Saadon.
The hall, which is about 1,500 square meters in size, is intended for sports classes and basketball and volleyball activities during the day, and at the same time in the afternoon it also allows for activities of the artistic gymnastics branch, netball, judo, studio classes and other sports activities.
It is operated by the sports department in "meets" community centers headed by Diego Levenson.
The hall also includes restrooms, a studio room, players' locker rooms, management and operation rooms, as well as a 420-seat grandstand.
The mayor, Liat Shohat, stated at the ceremony: "Like all Israeli children of my generation, I grew up and was educated on the story of the heroism of the 11 murdered athletes.
All my years this terrible story gave me no rest and I sought to read and learn more about the event that the human mind has trouble containing the magnitude of the horror.
When we decided in the municipality of Or Yehuda on the construction of this new and large sports hall, in this year, 2022 - the anniversary year of the murder, I had not even a shadow of a doubt: the hall will commemorate the names of the 11 murdered athletes and their heroism. Many thanks to all the many partners who worked with us to achieve this goal."
At the inauguration ceremony of the new sports hall in Or Yehuda,
The representative of the families, Ilana Romano, said: "If someone had told me 50 years ago that no one would forget, I would not have believed it. We are going through such a difficult year, and when we come here and see a hall from which a legacy will continue to grow, it is a tremendous thing. I want to say Thank you for remembering our athletes. I pray that the next Artium or Hanna will come out of this hall. The Olympic Committee leads a tremendous legacy. For us, this is pride."
Yael Arad, Chairman of the Olympic Committee: "The commemoration of our heroes who were murdered at the Olympic Games in Munich here in Or Yehuda is particularly moving.
The commitment of the Israeli public to their memory and the commitment of Israeli athletes to the legacy of the YA is unprecedentedly important. Every time the Israeli flag is raised and hope is voiced and a medal is awarded to Israeli athletes, this is evidence of the victory of the Israeli spirit."
Meir Bardugo, Acting CEO of the Council for the Settlement of Sports Betting: "There is nothing symbolic, with the 50th anniversary of the terrible massacre in Munich, in the launch of an innovative sports hall named after the 11th Athletes.
And who will, and from here, Olympic athletes will grow who will bring pride to the people of Israel."
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