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Israel’s national gymnastics team has suspended all team training and activities amid the recent Iranian counterattack on the country following the US-assisted attacks on Iran.
The Israel Gymnastics Federation (IGF) provided a statement to Pak Gazette Digital announcing that the violence has caused “unavoidable disruptions.”
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““The current security situation in our region has resulted in inevitable disruptions to our regular training schedule and has created significant uncertainty regarding the professional plans of the national teams, particularly now that we are at the beginning of the international season,” the statement read.
“At this time, all training activities have been temporarily suspended, pending approval from the relevant authorities to safely resume operations. Naturally, the suspension of training and the closure of airspace is causing considerable stress and concern. However, the safety and well-being of our gymnasts and professional staff remains our top priority. We sincerely hope for safer, calmer days to come, when we can focus solely on sport.”
A source within the team told Pak Gazette Digital on Saturday that the gymnasts have been moving between bomb shelters since Iran’s counterattacks began.
Israel’s gymnastics team is considered one of the country’s strongest Olympic programs along with its judo and sailing teams. The team is just a week away from a successful trip to the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup in Germany, where the country’s star Artem Dolgopyat won the gold medal in floor gymnastics.
Now, the team will have to seek safety until the attacks end.
The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem has ordered all U.S. government employees and their family members to continue sheltering in place at or near their residences as a safety precaution. Iran keeps shooting missiles against Israel.
Additionally, the embassy announced that due to the security situation it would close on March 2 and did not give an estimate of when it would reopen. The closure includes consular sections in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
The embassy also said it is “not in a position at this time to evacuate or directly assist Americans in leaving Israel.” He noted that Ben Gurion Airport remains closed and that no commercial or charter flights operate from the airport.
On Friday, before the launch of Operation Epic Fury, the embassy gave everything non-essential workers permission to leave Israel, with reports that US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee urged those wishing to leave to do so as soon as possible.
Iranian airstrikes killed at least eight Israelis on Sunday as Tehran’s latest missile barrage fell just miles from Jerusalem.
The attacks hit the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh. Initial reports said four people were killed when missiles hit a residential area on Sunday, but the death toll rose to eight, according to Israel’s national emergency service.
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Iran’s army has carried out counterattacks against Israel and US bases in the Middle East after a joint US-Israeli attack killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.
The strikes also killed several other senior Iranian leaders, including the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.
