In the summer of 2021, Israel's Paralympic swimming team thrilled its country when it achieved impressive results with eight medals at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo and managed to play the national anthem several times, but since that moment, they cannot enter and train in the country's only competitive national pool, at the Wingate Institute in Netanya.
In the last few days, the team's coach Jacob Binanson applied to hold a five-day training camp instead at the end of March, along with two days of competition, but he will have to give it up, because of the high fees he is required to pay.
Binanson told Israel Hayom: "We wanted to do a training camp in Wingate and invite an amputee Paralympic champion from Ukraine, but there are no budgets. The increases are simply crazy for three athletes, who brought eight medals in the Paralympic Games in Tokyo. They want them to pay 30 thousand shekels for five days and are not willing to do anything to help
"We haven't trained there since we returned from the Olympics, it's supposed to be a state facility, where we're supposed to train. I prefer to hold the state championship in Bulgaria, it will be easier for me there, than here in Netanya. Wingate is the only facility that meets the conditions here and there is no other place."
Yaakov Beninson and Ami Dedown, photo: Efrat Eshel
The coach added: "We just returned from a training camp in Armenia, which costs three weeks with flights and everything, is not worth what is demanded here at Wingate - does that make sense? If I don't have a place to enter Wingate, where do you want me to train my athletes?
"These are athletes who represent the country and come with receipts, not anonymous athletes, it doesn't make sense that they can't enter and train at Wingate. Let it be simply written that it is a national pool with an asterisk, that there is no entrance for the disabled - so that's fine.
"I only need a 50 meter pool, accommodation, food and nothing more. But there should be normal prices. It just hurts my heart, I also understand my management, who say they cannot afford these costs. This is a national house, and the priorities should be for the teams that represent the country in world championships And in the Olympics, I can't actually be there at all."
Wingate's response will be provided when received.
were we wrong
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us