Artem Dolgopyat of Team Israel celebrates winning gold in the men’s floor exercise final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Aug. 1, 2021. (Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) (JTA) — Israeli men’s gymnast Artem Dolgopyat took home the Olympic gold medal in floor exercise Sunday, giving Israel its second-ever gold in any Olympic event.
Born in Dnipro, Ukraine, Dolgopyat moved with his family to Israel when he was 12 and began training at Maccabi Tel Aviv, an acclaimed sports club that has produced multiple Olympians. The Associated Press had predicted that he would win gold at the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics (and that six other Israeli athletes or teams would medal during the games).
Until Sunday, the only gold medal ever won by an Israeli was Gal Fridman’s 2004 gold in windsurfing.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.