Spanish TV commentators skip Israeli athlete during European Championships broadcast

Spanish television commentators skipped the introduction of Israeli athlete Omri Shiff during coverage of the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham.

The incident took place at Alexander Stadium during RTVE’s coverage of the men’s 400m hurdles, as the Spanish national broadcaster showed the athletes being introduced before the race.

As the camera moved along the line-up, commentators named the competitors and their countries in turn.

Belgium’s Julien Watrin, Finland’s Antti Sainio, Austria’s Niklas Strohmayer-Dangl and Slovakia’s Patrik Dömötör were all introduced.

But when the camera moved to Shiff, representing Israel in lane five, his name and country were not mentioned.

Instead, the commentary briefly moved on to another subject. When the camera reached Hungary’s Árpád Bánóczy in lane four, the introductions resumed, and he was identified.

Shiff was the only athlete in the sequence whose introduction was omitted.

Footage of the moment has circulated online, drawing criticism from Spain’s Jewish community and the Israeli Embassy.

Responding to Jewish News, RTVE apologised for the omission but denied it had anything to do with Shiff being Israeli.

“We sincerely regret not having named all the athletes who appeared on screen during the Teledeporte broadcast, as happened in the case of the Israeli athlete Omri Shiff,” the broadcaster said.

“This situation is due exclusively to the complexity of the long athletics sessions and to the inherent dynamics of live broadcasting – such as trackside commentary or production needs – without any relation to political, ideological, or religious motives.

“Our commitment is to give visibility to each and every participant, and we work to achieve this in every broadcast. We reiterate our apology to the affected athlete.”

The Federation of Jewish Communities of Spain (FCJE), which represents Jewish communities across the country, had called on RTVE to apologise and explain what happened.

“Hiding an athlete’s presentation is discrimination. If it is hidden for being Jewish and Israeli, it is also antisemitism,” the federation said. “RTVE rectify this now. Sporting values must unite and not segregate.”

In an open letter to RTVE president José Pablo López, the FCJE expressed its “discomfort and deep concern” and said the commentators introduced all the athletes individually “with the exception of the Israeli Omri Shiff, who was completely omitted without any explanation”.

The federation had called for “public apologies and rectification” and assurances that athletes will be treated equally regardless of nationality.

The Israeli Embassy in Spain also reacted, writing: “This is his name: Omri Shiff. If it’s so difficult for RTVE, we’ll say it.”

Spanish pro-Israel group ACOM accused RTVE of “institutional antisemitism” and criticised commentators Lourdes García Campos and Jesús España.

“They introduce everyone… except the representative from Israel,” the group said, accusing the broadcaster of turning “sport into an instrument of hate and discrimination”.