For Immediate Release
Toronto, August 2, 1986... In separate letters to Juan Antonio Samaranch, President of the International Olympic Committee and Billy Payne, President & CEO of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games, B'nai Brith Canada's President Lyle Smordin and Executive Vice-President Frank Dimant appealed for recognition of the Israeli athletes slain in Munich. The text of the letters read:
“We are writing to express our grief for those individuals who lost their lives because of the tragic and cowardly bombing during the Atlanta Olympics. Events such as the bombing do irreparable damage to the spirit of the Olympics, which strives to bring athletes from around the world together to compete in an atmosphere of friendly competitiveness.”
“Unfortunately, this is not the first time that politics has encroached upon the spirit of the Olympics. In 1972, 11 Israeli athletes, who came to compete at the Munich Olympics were killed by a heinous terrorist act by Palestinian terrorists. Like those killed last week in Atlanta, the Israeli athletes did not come to the Olympics with a political agenda, however a political agenda was brutally thrust upon them resulting in a horrible massacre. As the Olympics come to a close, we appeal to the Olympic committee to honour and recognize the Israeli athletes slain in Munich. To ignore their deaths would diminish their lives and the Olympic spirit that they brought with them to Munich.”
“While we understand the Olympic Committee's desire to keep politics out of the Olympic games, the horrible events that transpired in Atlanta and Munich makes this notion moot. The commemoration of the those slain in Munich should not be ignored, the event occurred and to pretend otherwise is an insult to the memory of the Israeli athletes.”
“Once again in the final days of the Olympics, we appeal to you to make an honourable gesture to those Israeli athletes killed in Munich.”
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