Yakov Springer (June 10 1921 – 6 September 1972) was a

wrestler Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat sport ...

and a

weightlifting Weightlifting generally refers to activities in which people lift Weight training#Equipment, weights, often in the form of dumbbells or barbells. People lift various kinds of weights for a variety of different reasons. These may include various t ...

coach and judge, but is best known as one of the victims of the

Munich massacre The Munich massacre was a terrorist attack carried out during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany, by eight members of the Palestinian people, Palestinian militant organization Black September Organization, Black September, who i ...

at the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...

. During the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

, Springer took part in

Warsaw Ghetto Uprising The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising; pl, powstanie w getcie warszawskim; german: link=no, Aufstand im Warschauer Ghetto was the 1943 act of Jewish resistance in the Warsaw Ghetto in German-occupied Poland during World War II to oppose Nazi Germany's ...

.A New Shoah: The Untold Story of Israel's Victims of Terrorism By Giulio Meotti. p.36 The Polish-born Springer was murdered with 10 other men who were representing Israel in the Olympics in Munich. They were murdered by

Palestinian terrorist Palestinian political violence refers to acts of violence perpetrated for political ends in relation to the State of Palestine or in connection with Palestinian nationalism. Common political objectives include self-determination in and soverei ...

s, from the PLO Black September group. The Palestinians took the 11 Israelis as

hostage A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized, such as a relative, employer, law enforcement or government to act, or ref ...

s and asked for the release of 236

Palestinian prisoners in Israel Palestinian prisoners of Israel (or as used by the Israel Prison Service: Security prisoners) refers in this article to Palestinians imprisoned in Israel in the context of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. The future of Palestinian prisoners ...

and Germany. After the hostages and Black September group members arrived at the airport, the German police attacked in an attempt to rescue them. The group members killed the Israelis with guns and with grenades.

References

1921 births 1972 deaths Warsaw Ghetto Uprising insurgents Polish emigrants to Israel 20th-century Polish Jews 20th-century Israeli Jews Citizens of Israel through Law of Return Jewish wrestlers Israeli wrestling coaches Victims of the Munich massacre Deaths by firearm in Germany Olympic officials {{paramilitary-action-stub