Team Israel Olympic bobsled captain AJ Edelman has accomplished a life mission — leading the first ever Israeli bobsled team to the reach the Olympics.

He had to sacrifice millions in Bitcoin to get his team to Milan Cortina, then had to live off smoked salmon and pizza for two weeks when he got there. 

It wasn’t even the best pizza that he’s had. He prefers Chicago deep dish. 

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And the whole team had to take some arrows throughout the process. The hotel Edelman’s team was saying at was burglarized days before the competition began.

Then, when they finally made it onto the track, a broadcaster went on a politically charged tirade against the team while it competed. The broadcaster referenced the military service of several athletes on the team. 

“Edelman, a first-time Olympian and self-described ‘Zionist to the core,’ who has posted several messages on social media in support of the genocide in Gaza,” RTS presenter Stefan Renna said during the team’s heat in the men’s two-man bobsled Olympic competition on Feb. 16. 

“This raises the question of his presence in Cortina during these games, since the [International Olympic Committee] had indicated that athletes who have — and I quote — ‘actively supported the war by participating in pro-war events, being militarily engaged, or via their activities on their social media networks’ were not eligible to participate.”

The entire broadcast was later removed from the RTS website. But millions had already found out about it, including Edelman and his teammates. 

“This individual clearly pre-wrote a diatribe timed to two minutes, you know, the entirety of our run. I just think it’s so sad, I don’t know how you can live like that,” he said. 

“On a personal level, I’ve dealt with so much worse. I said those things. I said I’m a Zionist, I said I’m proud of Ward [Fawarseh], who served. I said that. I said what I said. I believe Israel is just. I believe it’s a force for good. I stand for that force for good. I represent that force for good. So when someone just says that I represent evil or I am evil for representing what I represent, it’s like water off the back.” 

Multiple members of the Israeli team served in the nation’s military. Some of them were deployed to Gaza to fight Hamas after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks.

“Israelis are Israelis. What they do in the service of the country is always going to define who they are,” Edelman said. 

“We view ourselves right now entirely as athletes… I can say that as athletes, as men, as humans and Israelis, I’m very proud of their accomplishments on the Olympic stage.”

The team finished 26th in the two-man bobsled competition, falling short of Edelman’s pre-Olympic goal of making the top 20. Germany won 10 of all 12 bobsled medals and all eight golds and silvers in Milan Cortina. The team was then disqualified by the Israel Olympic Federation after one of its athletes lied to Olympic officials about an illness so the team could make a substitution. The team did not make it to the last day of the games. 

Prior to that, Edelman celebrated the accomplishment due to its historic symbolism and the adversity it took to get there. 

The team came just 0.01 seconds shy of making the Beijing Games four years ago. Then many of the team’s athletes were called to war after Oct. 7 the following year. 

For Edelman, just ensuring the team existed at that point was anything but certain. 

They came all the way back to qualify for Milan Cortina in what was, one way or another, Edelman’s last 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 was staying at a hotel in Prague, Czech Republic. As captain, Edelman traveled ahead to Venice, and that’s when he found out his team’s hotel in Prague had been burglarized and vandalized. 

“It was just another Tuesday for us,” Edelman said. 

“We’ve been turned away from staying from places in Germany because it was Christmas Eve and they saw that we’re Jewish. Another athlete who is competing in the Games this time actually said that he wouldn’t ever compete on this team because Israel is a bunch of ‘baby killers.’ A swastika was drawn on our team van.” 

They moved past the burglary to put their best foot forward once the competition began. 

The reward came when fan mail from Israel started flowing in. It reminded Edelman and his teammates why they did this. They wanted to inspire their countrymen, especially the next generation, to achieve unlikely feats. 

“The reception of the team has been overwhelming,” Edelman said. “They’re putting their hopes and their dreams into your journey, and that’s just something very special. When they think back on it, they probably won’t remember you, they probably won’t remember you at all, but they’ll remember the country was represented.” 

In the final days of the games, as Edelman came to the end of his journey of more than a decade, he reflected on it all.

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Israel’s Adam Edelman, left, and Menachem Chen arrive at the finish during a two-man bobsled run at the Winter Olympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

“I still haven’t processed really being here,” Edelman said. “I don’t know what it will look like when all that is said and done…. 

“I’ve woken up every day for the last 12 years and went to bed every night for the last 12 years with a goal in mind, and with a determination to get this thing done. Now that I will have realized that it is done, I don’t know exactly how that will look like. I think in some sense I’m worried, in some sense I’m excited.”

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Video assistant referee causes controversy every week in the Premier League, but how are decisions made, and are they correct?

This season, we take a look at the major incidents to examine and explain the process, both in terms of VAR protocol and the Laws of the Game.

Screenshot credit: BBC, TNT

Andy Davies (@andydaviesref) is a former Select Group referee, with over 12 seasons on the elite list, working across the Premier League and Championship. With extensive experience at the elite level, he has operated within the VAR space in the Premier League and offers a unique insight into the processes, rationale and protocols that are delivered on a Premier League matchday.

Nottingham Forest 0-1 Liverpool

Referee: Anthony Taylor
VAR: Paul Tierney
Time: 90 minutes
Incident: Liverpool have a goal overturned for a handball offense in the buildup.

What happened: Forest defender Ola Aina attempted to clear the ball, but the ball rebounded off Alexis Mac Allister and into the goal.

VAR decision: After a VAR review, the referee overturned the original decision of goal to Liverpool.

Taylor’s announcement revealed: “After review, the ball hits the arm of the goal scorer, Liverpool No. 10 [Mac Allister]. Therefore, it’s an accidental handball by the goal scorer, so the final decision is a direct free kick.”

VAR review: A quick review by Tierney identified that the ball had deflected off part of the arm of Mac Allister before it went into the Forest goal (with the tolerance level at the sleeve level).

Verdict: This was a correct VAR intervention for this overturn, regardless of how harsh it will feel on Liverpool.

The law states that a goal can’t be scored by the use of hand/arm even if it is accidental or a non-deliberate act.

Time: 97 minutes
Incident: A VAR check for offside on Virgil van Dijk ahead of Mac Allister’s goal.

What happened: Mac Allister smashed the ball home, but a VAR check was needed for Van Dijk when the cross came in, as the Netherlands defender played a big part in Mac Allister being able to get to the ball.

VAR decision: After a VAR review, the goal was allowed to stand.

VAR review: Another relatively quick review, as the semi-automated technology showed Van Dijk was marginally onside.

Verdict: A tight one, but Van Dijk was indeed just onside, despite what the initial replays looked like.

play

Are Man City more confident in title charge after win vs. Newcastle

Don Hutchison and Steve Nicol discuss Man City’s Premier League title aspirations after their win over Newcastle.

Manchester City 2-1 Newcastle United

Referee: Tom Bramall
VAR: James Bell
Time: 42 minutes
Incident: Disallowed goal for offside.

What happened? Newcastle’s Dan Burn nodded home a Sandro Tonali free kick, only for the goal to be disallowed for offside. However, the replays showed that Burn was in an offside position only because he was pushed by City defender Rúben Dias.

VAR decision: The VAR checked and cleared the on-field decision of no goal, confirming that an offside offense had been committed.

VAR review: Bell would have been very aware that there was a deliberate action by Dias on Burn prior to the goal being scored. With the Newcastle defender clearly in an offside position when he scores, the VAR check centered around the possible foul leading up to the goal and whether it met the criteria for a possible penalty kick.

It was a clear and deliberate push; however, the ball had not been played by Tonali at the moment the push occurred, and therefore the VAR was unable to intervene as the ball was not active.

Indeed, Law 12 says: Direct and indirect free kicks and penalty kicks can only be awarded for offenses committed when the ball is in play.

Verdict: Watching the replays, Newcastle players and their supporters will feel hard done by in this situation, which is understandable. The reality is that this was a calculated action by Dias and the City backline, who clearly understood the law and timed the push to perfection.

Within the laws of the game, no offense could have been committed here, and only the referee can intervene to manage physical contact prior to the ball being in play. The VAR has no jurisdiction to get involved without the ball in play, unless an act of violent conduct has occurred, which was not the case here.

Time: 51 minutes
Incident: Possible second yellow card for Man City’s Bernardo Silva

What happened: Silva had already been cautioned, but minutes later, he appeared to jump into Burn with no attempt to play the ball. Was he fortunate not to receive a second yellow card?

VAR decision: The VAR did not view this a possible red card challenge, and under the current rules, they are unable to intervene in possible second yellow card situations (only in straight red decisions).

Verdict: For a referee to send a player off for a second yellow card in this type of situation, they are looking for the challenge to be above their threshold. It has to hit you immediately as a second yellow without a second thought, and you know it in the moment.

Watching this clip in isolation, Silva is fortunate not to have received a second yellow for what was an unnecessary challenge as he made no attempt to play the ball.

However, in the context of a physical game, it wasn’t a standout moment and not one that would have caused Bramall too much discomfort in real time.

There are the moments in big games when you trust your instincts, and I felt this was sensible game management, as awarding a second yellow card was not the most obvious outcome.

• ECB emails all eight The Hundred sides on discrimination claims.
• 67 Pakistan players enter The Hundred auction pool.
• No Pakistan players picked in last year’s auction.
  

The England and Wales Cricket Board has written to every team in The Hundred to remind them of their responsibilities amid claims Pakistan players could be frozen out by the Indian-owned franchises.

It was reported by the BBC earlier this week that Manchester Super Giants, MI London, Southern Brave and Sunrisers Leeds would not consider any Pakistan cricketers at The Hundred auction from March 11-12.

But it is understood that the ECB sent an email to the eight sides on Sunday, warning them that action would be taken if there is any evidence of discrimination, including ignoring players based on nationality.

If any proof is forthcoming, then the matter will likely be referred to the independent Cricket Regulator, although the ECB, which oversees the 100-ball competition, may take separate action, too.

Longstanding geopolitical tensions between the two Asian nations have cast a shadow over cricket for many years, with an effective blanket ban on Pakistan players at the Indian Premier League being in place since 2009.

Opportunities for Pakistan players have been squeezed further by several IPL owners taking charge of domestic franchises abroad – such as South Africa’s SA20 and the ILT20 in the United Arab Emirates.

A total of 67 Pakistan players – 63 men and four women – have submitted themselves for next month’s auction in The Hundred, including Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah.

There are 964 players in the auction, from which the franchises must submit a list of 75-100 they are keen on, with the ECB on Thursday putting forward a shortlist of around 200 to go under the hammer.

There were no Pakistan players selected at last year’s auction – before the new investors assumed control – although left-arm seamer Mohammad Amir and all-rounder Imad Wasim featured as replacements.

That was largely down to Pakistan’s busy summer schedule, rendering their high-profile players unavailable for some of the tournament, and it is a similar situation this year.

Pakistan have two Tests in the West Indies during the tournament, which is set to run from July 21 to August 16, and then play the first of three Tests against England three days after The Hundred final.