Božo Švarc (Schwartz) (6 September 1920 – 4 May 2007) was a Yugoslav -

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

athlete, political activist, and

WW2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

veteran. Švarc is one of a very few survivors of notorious Jadovno concentration camp and one of the founding fathers of

Partizan Belgrade Jugoslovensko sportsko društvo Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, Југословенско спортско друштво Партизан, lit=Yugoslav Sports Society Partizan), commonly abbreviated as JSD Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, ЈСД Партизан, link ...

Biography

Božo Švarc was born in 1920 in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. Before the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, he was a student of Technical Faculty and member of the youth branch of Communist Party of Yugoslavia, since 1939. During the 1930s Švarc was an active member of the

Maccabi World Union Maccabi World Union is an international Jewish sports organisation spanning five continents (Africa, North America, South America, Australia, Europe) and more than 50 countries, with some 400,000 members. The Maccabi World Union organises the Mac ...

sports club (skiing and high-jump). Švarc was among 165 Jewish youths arrested by Ustasha nazi collaborators in May 1941. He escaped execution from

Jadovno concentration camp The Jadovno concentration camp was a concentration and extermination camp in the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) during World War II. Commanded by Juco Rukavina, it was the first of twenty-six concentration camps in the NDH during the war. Est ...

in the Lika region. In August 1941 Švarc was deported to Jasenovac concentration camp. Together with his friend and fellow Macabee Pavel Lev, Švarc escaped Jasenovac and joined the partisans in

Banija , settlement_type = Geographic region , image_skyline = Banovina-Banija-Банија.jpg , image_caption = Collage of Banovina Photos , image_shield = , shield_size ...

region in September 1942. After WW2, Švarc was among founders of

football club, and long-standing president of Partizan ice-hockey and Partizan swimming club. Švarc also served as the Chairman of the archive of Military History Institute in Belgrade. He retired in 1980 in the rank of the JNA colonel. Švarc died in Belgrade in May 2007.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Svarc, Bozo 1920 births 2007 deaths Sportspeople from Zagreb Yugoslav Partisans members Yugoslav communists Yugoslav Jews Jewish athletes (track and field) Military personnel from Zagreb