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Two days before his first Olympics, Israeli swimmer learns of father's death
By Haaretz Service
Tags: Olympic games, Alon Mendel 

A day after his father's sudden death in a fall at their Netanya home, Israeli Olympic swimmer Alon Mendel has decided to push on and participate in the Beijing games this week.

Mendel made the decision after consulting with family and friends, who assured him that it is what his father Costia would have wanted.

Mendel will be competing in the 200 meter butterfly race, and will return to his family home afterward to take part in the shiva - the seven-day Jewish mourning period.
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Israel's Olympic delegation has arranged a special entrance pass to the Olympic village for Mendel's sister, Maya, who arrived in Beijing Thursday morning to support her brother. Mendel's mother, Rina, will stay in Israel and watch the games from home.

On Thursday Rina said, "Costia and I took Alon to every single one of his competitions, and now, it is up to him to carry out his father's desire for him to compete in the games."

Costia Mendel, 51, died Wednesday after falling from a ladder while changing a light on the exterior wall of his house. He suffered a traumatic blow to the head and died shortly thereafter.

Preliminaries for the butterfly competition will be held Monday and the semi-final and final races will be held over the next two days.

Rina Mendel described her husband - her partner since high school - as "the strongest man" she had ever met, with whom she built "a glorious family and raised three successful children."

Amid Mendel's tragedy, an official welcome ceremony was held in honor of the Israeli Olympic delegations, as well as four others, upon their arrival at Beijing's Olympic Village.

All members of the Israeli delegation attended the event, which included the raising of the Israeli flag, but the absence of one official was felt. Science, Culture and Sport Minister Raleb Majadele arrived after most of it was over.

His spokesperson said that the minister was driven to the event by a local driver, who was unclear about the location of the ceremony.

Shortly after the ceremony, President Shimon Peres paid a visit to the Israeli delegation at the Olympic Village.

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