AJ Edelman He didn’t believe it when he heard the news.

He led the first Israeli bobsled team to compete in the Olympics. Victims of theft and vandalism Just days before they were preparing to compete. Edelman was in Venice, Italy, and found out about the news in a text message from a teammate at his hotel in Prague.

“It was information I couldn’t wrap my head around, it was something I couldn’t imagine. They were like, ‘Hey, this place got turned over. Someone took a shower and stole our stuff,’ and I was like, ‘This doesn’t make sense.’ I thought it was a joke at first,” Edelman told Fox News Digital.

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“We took fingerprints and so on and they went through the entire process of an aggravated burglary.”

Once the situation stabilizes, they realize they are ready to cope and overcome. This is something they are used to.

“It’s just another Tuesday for us,” Edelman said.

“One thing that we all pull together and realize is that we are just moving forward. Every step of the journey is another step towards the goal. We are not there yet. The goal was never to qualify, the goal was to make it to the Olympics…

“It’s a serious violation and you feel very violated in your own space, but I just told them ‘Hey guys, this is who we are and we have to move on. Whether it’s targeted or not, I think it was targeted, but no matter what, we’re going to move on.”

The team won first place in the country Bobsleigh Winter Olympics Venue In the qualifying round, he missed the opportunity to compete in Beijing in 2022 by 0.01 seconds. But athletes actually have to fight a battle to get another chance at the world stage.

After Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, many athletes were drafted into the army.

Edelman himself had to live below the poverty line to maintain his commitment to leading the team for the past 12 years. An MIT graduate who had to sell his Bitcoin, Edelman says if he had held it, it would be worth millions of dollars today.

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Members of the Israeli bobsleigh team (from left) Uri Zisman, Omer Katz, AJ Edelman, Ward Farwaseh, Itamar Shprinz pose for a photo before departing for the 2026 Winter Olympics at the Israeli Olympic Committee headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Frankel)

Meanwhile, he and his teammates have had to deal with many other incidents similar to the recent break-ins.

“We were refused permission to stay in Germany because it was Christmas Eve and they saw we were Jewish. Another athlete competing in the Olympics this time actually said he would never play for this team because Israel is a bunch of ‘baby killers.'” One Swastika is drawn on our team truck,” Edelman said.

“There are a lot of things about representing Israel. But the great thing about representing Israel, and I think it’s very important, is you learn to adopt a mindset of a winner rather than a victim… If you’re a winner and you truly believe you’re on a good mission… then those moments don’t matter as much.”

Edelman even expressed sympathy for the perpetrators of the recent theft and vandalism targeting his team.

“It’s sad. I’m not in their shoes. I don’t know if it was out of necessity or need or what happened. But I hope you get better. I really hope your life gets better,” Edelman said. “Those are things we can replace. But if that forced you to do what you did, I just hope you get help.”

Edelman and his teammates will look to provide inspiration to the rest of their country, especially the young Israelis who aspire to do the impossible.

Israel has never fielded an Olympic bobsled team before, and in a sport that relies heavily on resources, the likelihood of that happening is low.

They jokingly call their team the “Shul Runnings,” a Hebrew-themed adaptation of the popular 1993 film “Cool Runnings,” which told the story of the first Jamaican bobsled team to reach the Olympics.

Edelman’s brother Alex is a popular American comedian and they had a back-and-forth about the name a few years ago.

“I believe I did it,” AJ said of the person who came up with the name, “and then he incorporated it into his show, into his HBO special.”

But even after overcoming adversity and derailing things, Edelman still maintains rational expectations for how his team will perform.

He doesn’t expect them to be on the medal podium but is eager to get in Top 20He believes it will set an inspiring precedent for other Israelis eager to participate in cold-weather sports.

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Israeli flag bearer Maria Senyuk arrives for the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Friday, February 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

“One of the things I try to tell my kids is that in a few weeks, no one will remember our names. No one knows our names now. But they will remember that the Israeli bobsled team had success, and that will have a ripple effect far beyond what we know in our individual lives,” Edelman said.

“Everything we’ve done will be over in two weeks… I’m retiring and this is my last game, but the team will live on and what it achieved will live on.”

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