Tom Reuveny clinched gold in windsurfing, while fellow windsurfer Sharon Kantor claimed silver. Additional medals came from gymnastics and judo.
Israel has achieved a historic performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics, securing six medals so far, including an unprecedented three medals in a single day.
The highlight of Israel’s Olympic campaign came on Saturday, August 3rd, when Tom Reuveny won gold in the Men’s Windsurfing (IQFoil) event. This marked Israel’s first gold medal in this competition and only the fourth gold medal in the country’s Olympic history.
Reuveny, 24, followed in the footsteps of his coach, Gal Fridman, who won Israel’s first-ever Olympic gold medal in windsurfing 20 years ago in Athens.
“I believed in [Reuveny] all the way. I had a good feeling even before the competition,” said Fridman. “All week, I told him that he has it and he just needs to take it, not that anyone here gives gifts. We saw the competitors lose it under pressure. In terms of pressure, we are in the right place: We handled it well.”
Speaking to the difficulty of training for an Olympic event while his country was embroiled in conflict, Reuveny noted, “It was so hard to go training while everyone else was crying over lost people, dead people. It’s been so hard, and I still had to put my head down and keep training and that’s all for this moment.”
Reuveny, who finished only eighth at the 2024 iQFoil World Championships, said he was a “dark horse” of the final, surprising his competitors and fans alike with the unexpected gold.
On the same day, Sharon Kantor, 21, clinched a silver medal in the Women’s Windsurfing (IQFoil) event.
“The number of Israelis here with the Israeli flag is so unusual in the landscape,” Kantor said after the final in Marseille. The French city has a large Muslim population and is perceived to be very hostile to Israelis.
“It’s exciting to be a woman winning a medal, and now in sailing, it’s just crazy,” she added.
Completing the trio of medals on this historic day, Artem Dolgopyat, a gold medalist from the 2020 Games in Tokyo, secured a silver medal in the Gymnastics Floor final. This achievement made Dolgopyat Israel’s second individual multi-medallist in Olympic history.
“The team helped me prepare and picked me up. After I made it to the finals, I realized that I could do it with a very good feeling – that I could represent Israel as the best in the world,” the gymnast said.
Before Saturday’s triumphs, Israeli judokas had already secured three medals a day earlier, setting a new record for the most medals won in a single Olympic Games by Israel.
Peter Paltchik claimed bronze in the men’s under-100 kg weight class category, Inbar Lanir clinched silver in the women’s under-78 kg weight class, and Raz Hershko earned another silver in the women’s over-78 kg weight class.
This achievement is particularly significant as it comes during a time when Israel is facing challenges, as noted by Israeli Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, who congratulated the athletes saying, “We are proud of Reuveny and Kantor, which gives us a lot of pride during this period.”
As the Games continue, Israel’s performance has already made these games the most successful in its Olympic history.
Originally posted at israel21c.org
