Ran Jacob Torten (also "Ram" and "Ron," and "Tortan"; Hebrew: רן טורטן; December 14, 1966) is an Israeli former Olympic competitive sailor.[1] He was born in Israel, and is Jewish.[2]

Ran Torten
Personal information
Native nameרן טורטן
Full nameRan Jacob Torten
Nationality Israel
Born (1966-12-14) December 14, 1966 (age 57)
Israel
Height5-11.5 (182 cm)
Weight154 lb (70 kg)
Sailing career
ClassMen's 470 Class Two-Person Dinghy

Sailing career

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In 1986, Torten and his brother Dan Torten came in sixth in the 470 World Championships.[2]

He competed for Israel at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea at the age of 24 in Sailing, with his brother.[1] In the Men's 470 Class Two-Person Dinghy they came in 18th.[1] When he competed in the Olympics he was 5–11.5 (182 cm) tall and weighed 154 lbs (70 kg).[1]

Sailors at the Olympics are judged by the best six of their seven races.[3] One of the brothers' races, their fifth—as they were 10th in the standings—fell on Yom Kippur (the holiest day on the Jewish calendar), and the delegation instructed them to not compete.[4][5][6][7] They ignored the Israeli National Olympic Committee's instructions, sailed to a # 9 finish, were thrown off the Israeli team, and were sent back to Israel the following day.[4][6][8] Uri Afek, the Israeli delegation head, said, "Everyone knew no Israelis compete on Yom Kippur," but the brothers said they were not racing but rather sailing for their own enjoyment.[9] The brothers' appeals against the disciplinary committee's decision was rejected by the District and Supreme Court.[10] They were suspended by the Israeli Sports Association for a period of five years, but the Israeli High Court overturned that decision.[11]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Ram-Jacob Torten Bio, Stats, and Results". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 2020-04-18.
  2. ^ a b "Torten, Ron"
  3. ^ "Israel's Olympic Athletes Face Yom Kippur Problem". jta.org. 20 September 1988.
  4. ^ a b "A brief history of Israel at the Games". Haaretz.
  5. ^ "2008 Beijing Summer Olympics - Israel, Olympic Tradition". NBC Olympics. Archived from the original on May 17, 2012.
  6. ^ a b "Israeli Yachtsmen Facing Suspension". Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on November 24, 2016.
  7. ^ "1988 OLYMPIC GAMES Yachtsmen ordered home - 26 Sept 1988". The Canberra Times.
  8. ^ "26 October 1988". The Jewish Post.
  9. ^ "GAO LEADS WOMEN'S SPRINGBOARD". Washington Post. 24 September 1988.
  10. ^ "Disabled Israeli athlete banned for allegedly competing on Yom Kippur". Haaretz.
  11. ^ "Sport in the State The Last Fifty Years". Jewish Agency.