French olympian, Fabien Gilot, won the Silver Medal with his team in the 2016 Olympics men’s freestyle relay finals in Rio. His achievement is significant on its own, but would not be possible, had his Jewish grandfather not survived the Holocaust.
The swimmer’s tattoo in Hebrew mean, “Without them, I am nothing.” Tabletreported that the phrase is a tribute to his grandfather, Max Goldschmidt. Israel National News reported that the late Max Goldschmidt survived Auschwitz and greatly influenced Fabien’s life.
Max Goldschmidt was a German Jew who grew up in Berlin. After World War II he moved to France, met his wife, and raised a family. He died in 2012, but not before witnessing many of Fabien’s achievements.
France’s mens swimming team came in second behind the U.S. Men’s Swim Team, led by the most decorated of all Olympic athletes, Michael Phelps.
Grandson of Holocaust Survivor Wins Silver Medal for France at #Rio2016 #Olympics https://t.co/bfmHh3daVm pic.twitter.com/6wjrRCoCcG
— Michael Dickson (@michaeldickson) August 10, 2016
Article reposted with permission from Constitution.com
