Peter Paltchik secured Israel’s first medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Thursday, taking the bronze in the men’s under 100kg judo category. Just minutes later, female Israeli judoka Inbar Lanir followed with a silver medal in the women’s under 78kg competition.
This marks only the second time Israel has won a silver medal in the Olympics, with the first being Yael Arad’s silver in women’s judo at the 1992 Games.
Paltchik’s dramatic victory over Swiss judoka Daniel Eich followed earlier wins against Mongolia’s Gonchigsuren Batkhuyag and France’s Aurélien Diesse in the round-of-16, both achieved during Golden Score on yellow cards.
However, in the quarterfinals, Paltchik was defeated by World Champion Zelym Kotsoiev from Azerbaijan and moved to the Repechage. There, he overcame Michael Korrel from the Netherlands, setting up a bronze medal match against Eich. Early in the bout, Paltchik scored a Waza-ari but was subsequently penalized with two yellow cards for non-combativity and grip avoidance. With just five seconds remaining in the match, the referee called for a third yellow card, which would have put Eich on top, however, the call was overturned, and Paltchik stayed strong to take home the bronze.
“I can’t describe in words the feelings that I’m going through right now,” an emotional Paltchik began.
“Nothing ever comes easy for me. The time we’re going through in the country, the war, the injuries, the people we won’t see anymore. I just wanted to make everyone happy.”
For Paltchik’s coach, Oren Smadga, the win was especially meaningful, coming just weeks after his son, IDF Sgt. First Class (res.) Omer was killed while fighting in Gaza.
Paltchik thanked his family and dedicated the win to Smadga’s son. “I dedicate this to my entire family; I want them to have a hero who fought for everyone. This is for Omer, Oren’s son who was killed in battle.”
“I fought for everyone, for our flag, we worked so hard for this moment,” Paltchik added.
רגע שכולו ניצחון!
פיטר ואורן תודה לכם, ריגשתם מדינה שלמה 🇮🇱 pic.twitter.com/qDAOnkNCEa— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) August 1, 2024
Smadga also commented on the win, stating: “We had a very difficult day. We knew we were coming here with our backs against the wall, but each bout raised his confidence. This was huge. I came here with a lot of emotions, and this is a moment of joy alongside the personal grief of losing my son Omer. Our country is experiencing trauma, and this is the best public relations there is, we made amazing history.”
Lanir (24) took the silver in the women’s competition after defeating Khuslen Otgonbayar of Mongolia in the round of 16, going on to defeat Guusje Steenhuis of Holland in the quarterfinals. She then defeated Anna-Maria Wagner from Germany for the semifinal match. In the final round, Lanir was bested by Alice Bellandi, who has held her place as the world No. 1. Bellandi scored a Waza-ari three minutes into the match before Lanir was called for a third penalty for non-combativity.
“I have to say that I wanted to break the glass ceiling and win a gold medal in judo which would have been the country’s first,” Lanir said beaming. “I felt that it was possible, especially because of my coach Shani Hershko. It’s tough to be happy falling in the final, but still it’s an amazing accomplishment and it was a privilege to put on this performance. I can say that since the start of the war the most important thing for me was to train as hard as I could and come here to the Olympic Games in Paris to represent my country and see the flag raised.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Smadga for the wins, acknowledging that even “from the depth of your pain,” the coach “succeeded in bringing this blessing to the State of Israel.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog congratulated Lanir just minutes after she won the silver medal.
“What an incredible accomplishment winning a silver medal, it’s incredible. Today is the 300th day since October 7 and the beginning of the war and the country is in a tough situation, but you have given us light in the darkness and a wonderful moment. We are so excited for you,” Herzog said.
Lanir said representing Israel in the Olympic Games kept her moving forward during the difficult months leading up to the competition.
“Since the start of the war, my stomach has been in knots. I knew that the one thing I could do is keep training and doing what I’m best at because I have the privilege to represent the country and to raise the flag around the world – and that gave me huge motivation,” she said.
