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Israel’s national judo team opened trading on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) this morning to mark its first-place standing in the recent Tel Aviv Grand Prix competition. Israel finished first in the competition, winning 7 medals: 4 gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze. Participants in the opening bell ceremony included the medalists, the chairman and CEO of the Israel Judo Association (IJA), the coaches and the IJA management.
Moshe Ponte, IJA Chairman: “It is a great honor for us, the IJA and Israel’s national Judo teams, to be here on this exciting occasion. We are used to being in competitions, both in Israel and abroad, and to represent Israel on the judo mat; but to be in TASE’s trading “arena” – which indeed is an arena ן is a new experience for us. Judo imparts the values of hard work, excellence, thoroughness and dedication to constant improvement to its practitioners. These values also exist in the business world and are vital instruments for navigating life as well. I thank you all for inviting us here today and hope that in the future, not only we come here, but also some of the business persons heading the companies trading here, come to us. “Put your stock in judo – it’s a safe investment!”
Ittai Ben-Zeev, CEO TASE: “We are delighted and excited to host Israel’s national judo team. Unfortunately, the women’s national team could not join us because it is currently training abroad. The connection between sports, TASE and the business sector is a fitting connection and we hope that businesses adopt and support our athletes. Judo is currently the number one sport in Israel. Five out of Israel’s nine Olympic medals are in judo and I am confident that this sport will continue to flourish and be a source of additional pride and Olympic medals in the future. We have recently embarked on the campaign, “Fear Does Not Pay” and, without a doubt, you serve as shining examples that there is no reason to let fear prevail – you look fear straight into the eyes and triumph over it. We all have something to learn from your example.
In the picture: Representatives of Israel’s National Judo Team: Sagi Gur, IJA CEO; Moshe Ponte, IJA Chairman, Amnon Neubach, TASE Chairman of the Board, and Ittai Ben-Zeev, TASE CEO.
