Dan Alon
Personal information | |
---|---|
Nationality | Israeli |
Born | 28 March 1945 |
Died | 31 January 2018 | (aged 72)
Sport | |
Country | Israel |
Sport | Fencing |
Dan Alon (Hebrew: דן אלון; 28 March 1945 – 31 January 2018) was an Israeli fencer. He competed in the individual foil event at the 1972 Summer Olympics, at the age of 27.[1] He was placed fourth in round one with three wins (defeating John Bouchier-Hayes of Ireland, Arcangelo Pinelli of Italy, and Klaus Reichert of West Germany) and two losses and advanced to round two.[1] There, he placed fifth with two wins (defeating Omar Vergara of Argentina and František Koukal of Czechoslovakia) and three losses, and was eliminated.[1]
He was among six Israeli team members who avoided being captured by terrorists in the Munich massacre.[2] He and four teammates were in apartment 2 of the building at Connollystraße 31, and while the terrorists captured the Israeli residents in nearby apartments 1 and 3, they passed by this apartment, presumably led to believe by one of the kidnapped Israelis that this apartment was not occupied by Israelis. All five residents of apartment 2 managed to leave the building through the garden and flee to safety.
In 2012, Alon released a book entitled Munich Memoir, co-authored by Carla Stockton, recounting his experiences at the 1972 Munich Olympics, and the impact on his life.
Alon died from cancer on 31 January 2018 at age 72.[3]
References
- ^ a b c "Dan Alon Olympic Results". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
- ^ "Munich survivor Dan Alon carries scars of '72 Olympics". jewishchronicle.org. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
- ^ "Fencer who survived 1972 Munich massacre passes away". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 1 February 2018.