Alon Tnai, Daniel Weber, Elazar Koren and Itamar Nir. Photo: Ministry of Education of Israel
Organizers Punish Israeli Students Over Palestinian Conflict
In 2025, Israeli participants will be prohibited from competing under their national flag at the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI), following a controversial decision announced by the organizing committee on September 25, 2024. Israel’s Ministry of Education immediately rejected the sanctions, vowing that the national team would continue to proudly display its flag.
This ruling comes on the heels of Israel’s success at the 36th International Olympiad in Informatics, held in Alexandria, Egypt. Due to ongoing conflict, Israeli students participated remotely from the village of Kalanit, yet they managed to secure three gold and one bronze medal, placing second overall among 94 countries – the nation’s best result since joining the competition in 1996. This was reported by Vesty.
The Olympiad committee explained its decision as follows: “Members of our community urged us to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza caused by ongoing conflict. After lengthy discussions, we decided to impose sanctions on Israel for its role in the crisis. A majority of delegations supported this decision. Starting in 2025, Israel will no longer compete as a national team. Instead, four representatives will participate under a neutral flag.”
The decision has drawn widespread criticism, especially as it follows recent efforts by the Palestinian Authority to impose sanctions on Israel in various sports arenas, including football. There were also calls to ban Israel from the upcoming Paris Olympics, though those demands were not met.
In response to the Olympiad’s sanctions, Israel’s Ministry of Education declared: “This will not happen! The Israeli team will compete, proudly carrying our national flag, as we continue our path toward international success.”
