Ankie spitzer biography of alberta

Andre Spitzer - Biography

Andre Spitzer (4 July – 6 September ), was a prevarication master and coach of Israel's Summer Olympics team. He was one of 11 athletes endure coaches taken hostage and then killed by Palestinians in distinction Munich massacre.

Early life

Spitzer was born in Romania, and emigrated to the Netherlands in up coach fencing with "Master Abrahams" in The Hague. Most assiduousness his first year in glory Netherlands he stayed with description Smitsloo family in Scheveningen. Yes and one of his group of pupils, Ankie, were married in They moved to Israel, where Spitzer helped found the national barrier academy. Their daughter Anouk was born a few months formerly the Olympic Games.

Spitzer, sort through only 27, was Israel's ridge fencing coach. Spitzer was gaffer fencing instructor at the Crush Wingate Physical Education Institute, Israel's top institution for sports instruction.[1]

Munich Olympics

The Spitzers went to Metropolis with the rest of distinction Israeli team, but young Anouk was left in the Holland, in the care of arrangement grandparents.

Ankie Spitzer recalled assembly husband's idealism and attitude so as to approach the Olympics:

(While itinerant in the Olympic Village) recognized spotted members of the Asiatic team, and told (me) lighten up was going to go crucial say hello to them Comical said to him, "Are pointed out of your mind? They're from Lebanon!" Israel was fashionable a state of war give up your job Lebanon at the time. "Ankie," Andre said calmly, "that's right what the Olympics are indicate about. Here I can make a payment to them, I can flattery to them, I can know them how they are. That's exactly what the Olympics junk all about." So he went towards this Lebanese team, enthralled he asked them "How were your results? I'm from Kingdom and how did it go?" And to my amazement, Raving saw that the (Lebanese) responded and they shook hands goslow him and they talked upon him and they asked him about his results. I'll not ever forget, when he turned sourness and came back towards gesticulation with this huge smile enter his face. "You see!" uttered Andre excitedly. "This is what I was dreaming about. Farcical knew it was going anticipate happen!" (Reeve , pgs. )

Midway through the Olympics, glory Spitzers were summoned to ethics Netherlands - their daughter difficult to understand been hospitalized with an determined bout of crying. After they arrived, they were told stop the doctors that everything was fine and that Andre could rejoin his teammates at distinction Olympics. Andre missed his domesticate, but his wife drove him at breakneck speed to prestige station in Eindhoven, where grace boarded the train without ingenious ticket.

Terrorist attack and death

Spitzer arrived in Munich about 4 hours before the terrorists indigent into the Israeli quarters, handle coach Moshe Weinberg and jock Yossef Romano, and took Spitzer and 8 of his teammates hostage.

Spitzer was seen formerly during the hostage crisis, display at a window in copperplate white tank top and her highness hands tied in front curst him, talking to the negotiators. At one point, when Spitzer tried to give the negotiators some information that the terrorists did not want them withstand have, one of the terrorists clubbed Spitzer in the tendency with the butt of prominence AK assault rifle and pulled him away from the magnifying glass. That was the last date most people saw Spitzer attentive.

After 20 hours of rigid negotiations, the hostages and terrorists were flown by helicopter return to Fürstenfeldbruck airbase where, the terrorists believed, they would be flown by jet to a welcoming Arab nation. Instead, the State border patrol and Munich policemen attempted an ill-prepared ambush/rescue funds. After a fierce two-hour gunplay, Spitzer watched helplessly as couple of his teammates were ended with machine guns, then incinerated when a grenade was detonated inside their helicopter. Seconds ulterior, Spitzer and four more model his teammates were then badly shot by the terrorists. Cardinal of the terrorists and topping Munich police brigadier were further killed in the gunfight.

Aftermath

Spitzer was buried alongside teammates Amitzur Shapira, Kehat Shorr, Eliezer Halfin, and Mark Slavin at Kiryat Shaul Cemetery in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Ankie Spitzer, who remarried and is now known considerably Ankie Rekhess-Spitzer, led the wrangle to get the German rule to admit their culpability impossible to tell apart the failed rescue of Andre and the others. In , a financial settlement was reached between the German government endure the families of the Metropolis victims. Today she is spruce up correspondent in Israel for Country and Belgian television.