It was the Jewish state’s most successful Olympics ever – but making history was the last thing on Israeli athletes’ minds when their plane returned to Ben Gurion Airport on Monday. “I wanted to give my people these moments of happiness. This medal is not just mine, it’s theirs,” silver medal-winning judoka Raz Hershko told the .
“Since the war started, I have felt an even bigger desire to show the world how amazing and strong Israelis are,” she added. That sentiment – the desire to bring pride, joy and strength to their fellow countrymen – may even have been the magic ingredient that delivered Israel’s historic seven-medal haul. As gold-medal winning windsurfer Tom Reuveny told a press conference at Ben Gurion: “I really remember myself, just before the deciding final race, I thought about the whole State of Israel, I knew that the gold would not just be for me.
“There are so many soldiers who have been called together to protect us, and thanks to them I am here right now. “I want to offer a warm embrace to the families of the fallen [soldiers], it’s also thanks to them I’m even standing here and thanks to them we were even able to go to this Olympics.” Tom Reuveny celebrates winning Gold in the Men's Windsurf iQFoil class final (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images) Hershko, who said she had lot of friends fighting in Gaza, stressed that competing in the Olympics and raising the national flag was the most important thing she could do.
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