Maayan Davidovich (Photo: Alexei Yahananov)
Israeli windsurfer becomes 1st to compete in Oman
Maayan Davidovich travels to Oman on Austrian passport with personal bodyguard, agrees to compete without Israeli flag on her sail.
Israeli windsurfer Maayan Davidovich participated in the world championships in Oman on Monday, after agreeing to remove her national flag from her sail and enter the country on her Austrian passport accompanied by a personal body guard - all to ensure her safety.
Davidovich's participation marked the first time an Israeli has competed in Oman and the first time an Israeli athlete has
competed internationally without sporting the national flag.
Maayan Davidovich sailing without the Israeli flag. (Photo: Ziv Lebanon, Ocean Nation)
A number of Israeli windsurfers were originally blocked from competing in Oman by the Ministry of Culture and Sport over safety concerns.
Maayan Davidovich. (Photo: Oren Aharoni)
Davidovich earned the opportunity to compete after a lengthy fight by Alex Giladi, a member of the International Sailing Federation.
Davidovich has previously won two bronze medals at the windsurfing world championships.
On Monday, she came in ninth place overall after coming in tenth, eleventh and tenth again in three rounds of competition.
