Israeli Olympic team members killed by Palestinian gunmen at the 1972 Munich Games were remembered during Friday’s opening ceremony with a moment of silence, the first time this has happened.
The families of the 11 victims had long asked the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to hold a minute’s silence at a Games opening ceremony, but had until Friday been turned down.
On September 5, 1972, members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage at the Athletes Village by Palestinian gunmen from the Black September group. Within 24 hours, 11 Israelis, five Palestinians and a German policeman were dead after a standoff and subsequent rescue effort erupted into gunfire.
The IOC in 2016 inaugurated the Place of Mourning in a leafy part of the Rio Olympic Village to remember those who had died during the Olympic Games, with two of the Israeli victims’ widows present.
