Israeli Olympic bobsled captain doubles down on loyalty to country after broadcaster condemned his team for it

Team Israel Olympic bobsled skipper AJ Edelman has accomplished a beingness ngo — starring the archetypal ever Israeli bobsled squad to the scope the Olympics.

He had to sacrifice millions successful Bitcoin to get his squad to Milan Cortina, past had to unrecorded disconnected smoked salmon and pizza for 2 weeks erstwhile helium got there. 

It wasn't adjacent the champion pizza that he's had. He prefers Chicago heavy dish. 

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And the full squad had to instrumentality immoderate arrows passim the process. The edifice Edelman's squad was saying astatine was burglarized days earlier the contention began.

Then, erstwhile they yet made it onto the track, a broadcaster went connected a politically charged tirade against the squad portion it competed. The broadcaster referenced the subject work of respective athletes connected the team. 

"Edelman, a first-time Olympian and self-described ‘Zionist to the core,’ who has posted respective messages connected societal media successful enactment of the genocide successful Gaza," RTS presenter Stefan Renna said during the team's vigor successful the men's two-man bobsled Olympic contention connected Feb. 16. 

"This raises the question of his beingness successful Cortina during these games, since the [International Olympic Committee] had indicated that athletes who person — and I punctuation — ‘actively supported the warfare by participating successful pro-war events, being militarily engaged, oregon via their activities connected their societal media networks’ were not eligible to participate."

The full broadcast was aboriginal removed from the RTS website. But millions had already recovered retired astir it, including Edelman and his teammates. 

"This idiosyncratic intelligibly pre-wrote a diatribe timed to 2 minutes, you know, the entirety of our run. I conscionable deliberation it's truthful sad, I don't cognize however you tin unrecorded similar that," helium said. 

"On a idiosyncratic level, I've dealt with truthful overmuch worse. I said those things. I said I'm a Zionist, I said I'm arrogant of Ward [Fawarseh], who served. I said that. I said what I said. I judge Israel is just. I judge it's a unit for good. I basal for that unit for good. I correspond that unit for good. So erstwhile idiosyncratic conscionable says that I correspond evil oregon I americium evil for representing what I represent, it's similar h2o disconnected the back." 

Multiple members of the Israeli squad served successful the nation's military. Some of them were deployed to Gaza to combat Hamas aft the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks.

"Israelis are Israelis. What they bash successful the work of the state is ever going to specify who they are," Edelman said. 

"We presumption ourselves close present wholly arsenic athletes… I tin accidental that arsenic athletes, arsenic men, arsenic humans and Israelis, I'm precise arrogant of their accomplishments connected the Olympic stage."

The squad finished 26th successful the two-man bobsled competition, falling abbreviated of Edelman's pre-Olympic extremity of making the apical 20. Germany won 10 of each 12 bobsled medals and each 8 golds and silvers successful Milan Cortina. 

Still, Edelman considers the team's travel a occurrence worthy celebrating owed to its historical symbolism and the adversity it took to get there. 

Israel's Adam Edelman, left, and Menachem Chen observe astatine the extremity of a two-man bobsled tally astatine the 2026 Winter Olympics successful Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, connected Monday, Feb. 16, 2026.  (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

The squad came conscionable 0.01 seconds shy of making the Beijing Games 4 years ago. Then galore of the team's athletes were called to warfare aft Oct. 7 the pursuing year. 

For Edelman, conscionable ensuring the squad existed astatine that constituent was thing but certain. 

They came each the mode backmost to suffice for Milan Cortina successful what was, 1 mode oregon another, Edelman's past effort astatine the Olympics.

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But they couldn't adjacent marque it to Milan Cortina earlier adversity struck. 

En-route to Italy, the squad was staying astatine a edifice successful Prague, Czech Republic. As captain, Edelman traveled up to Venice, and that's erstwhile helium recovered retired his team's edifice successful Prague had been burglarized and vandalized. 

"It was conscionable different Tuesday for us," Edelman said. 

"We've been turned distant from staying from places successful Germany due to the fact that it was Christmas Eve and they saw that we're Jewish. Another jock who is competing successful The Games this clip really said that helium wouldn't ever vie connected this squad due to the fact that Israel is simply a clump of ‘baby killers.’ A swastika was drawn connected our squad van." 

They moved past the burglary to enactment their champion ft guardant erstwhile the contention began. 

The reward came erstwhile instrumentality message from Israel started flowing in. It reminded Edelman and his teammates wherefore they did this. They wanted to animate their countrymen, particularly the adjacent generation, to execute improbable feats. 

"The reception of the squad has been overwhelming," Edelman said. "They're putting their hopes and their dreams into your journey, and that's conscionable thing precise special. When they deliberation backmost connected it, they astir apt won't retrieve you, they astir apt won't retrieve you astatine all, but they'll retrieve the state was represented." 

In the last days of the games, arsenic Edelman came to the extremity of his travel of much than a decade, helium reflected connected it all.

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Israel's Adam Edelman, left, and Menachem Chen, right, get astatine the decorativeness during a two-man bobsled tally astatine the 2026 Winter Olympics successful Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, connected Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

"I inactive haven't processed truly being here," Edelman said. "I don't cognize what it volition look similar erstwhile each that is said and done…. 

"I've woken up each time for the past 12 years and went to furniture each nighttime for the past 12 years with a extremity successful mind, and with a determination to get this happening done. Now that I volition person realized that it is done, I don't cognize precisely however that volition look like, I deliberation successful immoderate consciousness I'm worried, successful immoderate consciousness I'm excited."

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