Memorial Sites of the 1972 Olympic Attack

The Olympic Games were overshadowed by an attack on the Israeli team. On September 5, 1972, Palestinian terrorists stormed the quarters of the Israeli athletes in the Olympic Village. 17 people lost their lives – eleven Israeli hostages, one German police officer, and five terrorists.

The first memorial plaque bearing the names of the murdered Israeli athletes was installed in 1972. In 1995, a sculpture by artist Fritz Koenig titled Klagebalken ('Beam of Mourning') was added, with the victims’ names engraved on it. On the 45th anniversary of the attack, the memorial site 'Munich 1972 Olympic Attack' was inaugurated in 2017. Known as the 'Incision', it was designed by the architectural firm Brückner & Brückner. The site provides information about the victims, the attack itself, and German-Israeli relations.