Israeli swimmer Alon Mandel has decided to participate in the Olympic Games, despite the sudden death of his father in a household accident, Israel's Olympic Committee and the athlete himself said Thursday morning.
"I intend to muster all my strength and compete," Mandel said at the flag-raising ceremony in Beijing on Thursday, reported dpa.
Mandel's father, Costa, died Wednesday night when he fell from a ladder while doing some repair work at his home in the Israeli coastal city of Netanya.
Alon Mandel, 20, joined the Israeli delegation to the Games after a Greek swimmer was disqualified. He is scheduled to participate in the 200-metre butterfly competition, which gets underway Monday.