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Israeli Olympic bobsleigh team captain AJ Edelman accomplished his life’s mission: leading the first-ever Israeli bobsleigh team to reach the Olympics.
He had to sacrifice millions in Bitcoin to bring his team to Milan Cortina, then had to live on smoked salmon and pizza for two weeks upon arrival.
It wasn’t even the best pizza he’d ever eaten. He prefers Chicago deep dish.
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And the whole team had to take a few arrows along the way. The hotel in which Edelman’s team said it was broken into a few days before the start of the competition.
Then, when they finally got to the track, a broadcaster launched into a politically charged tirade against the team while they were competing. The broadcaster referenced the military service of several of the team’s athletes.
“Edelman, a first-time Olympics participant and self-described ‘Zionist at heart,’ who has posted several messages on social media in support of the genocide in Gaza,” RTS presenter Stefan Renna said during the team’s preliminary round in the Olympic men’s two-man bobsleigh competition on February 16.
“This raises the question of his presence in Cortina during these matches, since the [International Olympic Committee] had indicated that athletes who – and I quote – “actively supported the war by participating in pro-war events, being militarily engaged or through their social media activities” were not eligible to participate. »
The entire broadcast was later removed from the RTS website. But millions of people had already discovered it, including Edelman and his teammates.
“This individual clearly pre-wrote a two-minute long rant, you know, for our entire race. I just think it’s so sad, I don’t know how anyone can live like that,” he said.
“On a personal level, I’ve faced much worse. I said these things. I said I was a Zionist, I said I was proud of Ward. [Fawarseh]who served. I said that. I said what I said. I believe Israel is righteous. I believe it is a force for good. I stand for this strength for good. I represent this force for good. So when someone just says that I represent evil or that I’m evil because I represent what I represent, it’s like water running down your back.”
Several members of the Israeli team served in the national army. Some of them were deployed to Gaza to fight Hamas after the attacks of October 7, 2023.
“Israelis are Israelis. What they do in service to the country will always define who they are,” Edelman said.
“We currently consider ourselves entirely as athletes…I can say that as athletes, men, humans and Israelis, I am very proud of their achievements on the Olympic stage.”
The team finished 26th in the two-man bobsleigh competition, falling short of Edelman’s pre-Olympic goal of placing in the top 20. Germany won 10 of the 12 bobsleigh medals and all eight gold and silver at Milan Cortina.
Edelman nonetheless considers the team’s journey a success worth celebrating because of its historic symbolism and the adversity it took to get there.
Israelis Adam Edelman, left, and Menachem Chen celebrate the end of a two-man bobsleigh race at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Monday, Feb. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
The team came within just 0.01 seconds of participating in the Beijing Games four years ago. Then, many of the team’s athletes were called to war after October 7 of the following year.
For Edelman, ensuring the team existed at that time was anything but certain.
They came all this way to qualify for Milan Cortina in what was, one way or another, Edelman’s final attempt at the Olympics.
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But they couldn’t even make it to Milan Cortina before adversity struck.
En route to Italy, the team stayed at a hotel in Prague, Czech Republic. As captain, Edelman traveled to Venice and it was there that he discovered that his team’s hotel in Prague had been broken into and vandalized.
“It was just another Tuesday for us,” Edelman said.
“We were refused entry to Germany because it was Christmas Eve and they saw that we were Jewish. Another athlete competing in the Games this time actually said he would never compete on this team because Israel is a bunch of ‘baby killers’. A swastika was drawn on our team van.”
They moved beyond burglary to do their best once the competition started.
The reward came when fan mail from Israel started pouring in. It reminded Edelman and his teammates why they did this. They wanted to inspire their compatriots, especially the next generation, to achieve improbable feats.
“The reception from the team has been great,” Edelman said. “They’re putting their hopes and dreams into your trip, and it’s just something very special. When they look back on it, they probably won’t remember you, they probably won’t remember you at all, but they will remember that the country was represented.”
In the final days of the Games, as Edelman came to the end of his more than decade-long journey, he reflected on it all.
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Israelis Adam Edelman, left, and Menachem Chen, right, arrive at the finish during a two-man bobsleigh race at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)
“I still haven’t really understood that I’m here,” Edelman said. “I don’t know what it will look like once all this is said and done….
“I’ve been waking up every day for 12 years and going to bed every night for 12 years with a goal in mind and with the determination to make this happen. Now that I’ve realized that it’s done, I don’t know exactly what it will look like, I think in some sense I’m worried, in some sense I’m excited.”
