CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — The only Israeli athlete at the Milan Cortina Paralympics will leave the Games without a medal but full of pride from displaying her nation's flag at a time of distress back home.
Sheina Vaspi's best finish was 12th place in the women's Para alpine combined standing race. She is not expected to compete again because of a lingering injury and because of Shabbat. She missed a Paralympic race last weekend, too, because of the Jewish day of rest.
Israel and the United States launched a military attack on Iran on Feb. 28, less than a week before the opening ceremony at Milan Cortina.
“There's a feeling that we should hide the Israel flag because it’s not safe right now to show it, not safe to show you are Jewish around the world,” she said in an interview with The Associated Press. "So I’m really happy I had the chance, like, at least to have it big on the helmet and show up, because I’m really, really proud of where I come from. I’m really proud of my people and of what they’ve been through in the last two years. I’m so happy I had the chance to represent that."
The 24-year-old Vaspi, who had her left leg amputated in a car accident when she was a toddler, said it was tough to compete amid the ongoing war.
“It’s not easy because you need to be focused on the training and the performance and be in the moment,” she said. “And at the same time, you know, the people you love being in the shelter all night. I try really hard to keep focused, but it's definitely a challenge.”
Vaspi, the granddaughter of an Israeli army commander, said she lost a cousin who went to fight for Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack which left 1,200 people, mostly civilians, dead and 250 taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive killed more than 70,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
She said she was training in Colorado when she heard the news of her cousin's death and was “really broken,” but used that as motivation to keep competing and representing her nation.
“The first thing that (my cousin) did was go and show up, and without anyone asking him to," she said. “I knew he wanted me to keep going. He gave me a lot of strength.”
Vaspi said she felt welcomed by other athletes and felt good about explaining “more about what's going on” with Israel. She said she got “a lot of love” from other athletes.
“I really was surprised to see a lot of support from other athletes, and I see in here a lot of people that, that ask (about) the pain of Israel, and they really love Israel, and it gives me a lot of strength in this time,” she said.
Vaspi had to fight to be allowed to wear a skirt over her racing suit four years ago going into her first appearance in the Paralympics in Beijing. She said she doesn't feel the need to wear it anymore because it's not as important for her, and because it hinders her speed.
She is not making exceptions about the Shabbat, though, and said she didn't feel bad about missing races because of it.
“I'm completely fine and I go after what I believe in," she said. "And feel OK with that.”
Vaspi said she leaves the Games “a little bit frustrated" because of her result, as she feels she had “much more to give” on the slopes. In addition to her 12th place finish, she did not end the race in the Super-G standing. Vaspi was 15th in the giant slalom standing in Beijing 2022.
“But I’m really proud of myself that I showed up,” she said.
AP Winter Paralympics: https://apnews.com/hub/paralympic-games
Sheyne Vaspi, of Israel, competes in the alpine skiing women's alpine combined standing super-G event at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Israel's Sheyne Vaspi competes in the alpine ski women's combined standing super-G, at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (AP) — An attacker armed with a rifle rammed his vehicle into one of the nation’s largest reform synagogues Thursday, driving through a hallway as security opened fire, fatally shooting him, The Associated Press has learned.
The vehicle caught fire after crashing into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township, just outside Detroit, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to the AP.
None of the synagogue’s staff, teachers or the 140 children at its early childhood center were injured, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said.
The attacker drove through a set of doors and into the hallway where something in the vehicle ignited, Bouchard said. “He was traveling with purpose down the hall, from my look at the video,” Bouchard said.
Investigators were still working to identify the man and a possible motive, said the person who could not publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. The person cautioned that the investigation was still in the early stages.
In the minutes after the attack, smoke billowed from the synagogue. One security officer was hit by the vehicle and knocked unconscious but did not suffer life-threatening injuries, the sheriff said.
The synagogue has multiple security officers, he said, and at least one fired at the suspect, who was found dead inside his vehicle.
“We can’t say what killed him at this point but security did engage the suspect with gunfire,” the sheriff said, adding that it was possible the attacker killed himself or died some other way.
In a statement posted on Facebook, the synagogue praised its security personnel “who are truly heroes" for neutralizing the gunman.
“Our teachers followed their training and kept the children safe and calm,” it said.
About a dozen parents sprinted to get their children soon after authorities cleared the building. Other families were reunited at a nearby Jewish Community Center.
Allison Jacobs, whose 18-month-old daughter is enrolled in Temple Israel’s day care, said she got a message from a teacher saying the children were OK even before she knew what happened.
“There are no words. I was in complete and utter shock,” she told the AP. “I was hoping that it was a false report.”
Jacobs, whose family is Jewish, said she tries not to think about all that’s going on in the world.
“You never think that this is actually going to happen to you,” she said. “But I know that it’s — it’s just terrible. This morning I was mourning the loss of the school that got hit in Iran.”
Synagogues around the world have been on edge and have been ramping up security since the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran with missile strikes on Feb. 28.
The FBI has warned that Iranian operatives may be planning drone attacks on targets in California. Two men brought explosives to a far-right protest outside the New York mayoral mansion on Saturday. Investigators allege they were inspired by the Islamic State extremist group.
And an assailant drove a car into people outside an Orthodox synagogue in Manchester, England, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. He stabbed two people to death before officers shot and killed him.
President Donald Trump said he had been fully briefed on the attack, calling it a “terrible thing.”
Oakland County is Michigan’s second-largest county with roughly 1.3 million people. The majority of Detroit-area Jewish residents live there.
“This is heartbreaking,” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement. “Michigan’s Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace.”
It was the second attack at a house of worship in Michigan within the past year. Last September, a former Marine fatally shot four people at a church north of Detroit and set it ablaze. The FBI later said he was motivated by “anti-religious beliefs” against The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Temple Israel has 12,000 members, according to its website, which says the synagogue is “passionate about helping Jewish communities across the globe” and that its mission is to “create a community building through the lens of Reform Judaism.”
The Jewish Federation of Detroit briefly advised all Jewish organizations in the area to lock down.
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, a survivor of the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue massacre, said in a statement that the Michigan attack demonstrates yet again the consequences of hatred.
“We lose our humanity when we seek violent means as a solution,” said Myers, rabbi of the Tree of Life Congregation, where 11 worshippers died in the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history. “No one should dwell in fear because of who they are.”
This story has been corrected to show that the shooting at a church north of Detroit happened in September, not October.
Durkin Richer reported from Washington, D.C. Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit; Todd Richmond in Madison, Wisconsin; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; and Eric Tucker in Washington, D.C., contributed.
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard speaks to media as police respond to scene of a shooting at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., on Thursday, March 12 2026. (Jacob Hamilton /Ann Arbor News via AP)
Law enforcement escort families with children away from the Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Police respond to scene of a shooting at Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., on Thursday, March 12 2026. (Jacob Hamilton/Ann Arbor News via AP)
Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
A woman gathers children as law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue on Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)
Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue on Thursday, March 12, 2026, in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)
Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue, Thursday, March 12, 2026 in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)
Law enforcement respond to a call at Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)
People gather near Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Mich. (AP Photo/Corey Williams)
