STORIES OF TRIUMPH AND SACRIFICE - JEWISH ATHLETES AT THE OLYMPICS

I am not a sports fan. But there is always something about the Olympics that catches my attention. Perhaps it is the pageantry or the global gathering. I think, though, it is mostly the athletes’ personal stories of sacrifice and triumph. These Games, there will a short video from the Olympic Committee featuring Agnes Keleti, a 100-year-old Jewish woman who won 10 Olympic medals in gymnastics in the 1950s, the most successful Jewish female Olympian. But, there is much more to her story. It really pulls you in. So here you go.

Agnes Keleti was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1921. She started gymnastics at age four. By age 16, she was Hungary’s national champion—a feat she repeated ten times during her career. Agnes trained for the 1940 Olympics, but they were canceled because of World War II.

When the Nazis invaded Hungary, Agnes was expelled from her gymnastics club for being Jewish. Because she heard that Jews married to Christians were protected, she married a friend, István Sárkány, who was also a gymnast. It was a marriage of convenience and they divorced after the war. Then she purchased identity papers from a Christian girl. She escaped to the country and worked in a remote village as a maid. Her mother and sister were saved by the Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg, but her father perished in Auschwitz. Agnes says that she does not remember much about the war. Thinking about it fills her with profound sadness.

Amazingly, after the war, Agnes resumed training. In 1952, at age 31, Agnes finally had her chance at the Olympics. Agnes won four medals that year in Helsinki, Finland, and competed again in the 1956 Melbourne games, winning four gold and two silver medals. Agnes was 35 years old at the Melbourne Olympics, making her the oldest gymnast ever to win gold.

The same year as the Olympics, the Soviets invaded Hungary. While in Australia for the Olympics, Agnes defected, along with 40 other Hungarian athletes. Australia granted them asylum. The next year, she immigrated to Israel and her mother and sister joined her. She felt at home in Israel, got married, had two sons and began coaching. She considers having a family her victory over the Nazis.

At 100 years old, Agnes still trains every morning. She does ballet exercises. She did give up doing splits about a year ago.

The Forward has an excellent overview of the over 100 Jewish athletes competing in this year's Olympics. Check it out for more good Stories. Follow this link to learn read it

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Debbie Cohen