Canadian-Israeli philanthropist Sylvan Adams last week visited Gaza border communities, where he announced investments to build cycling and sports infrastructure in the region devastated by Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre.
Adams began his tour at the site of the Supernova music festival massacre, paying tribute to some 360 people killed at the outdoor rave and meeting with a survivor.
Later, Adams visited Kibbutz Be’eri, touring the ruins of the community and meeting with residents and families who survived the massacre. Adams also visited Sderot, where he heard testimonies from the residents who survived the Oct. 7 attacks.
During the trip, Adams announced that a bicycle track will be built in memory of the fallen, as a donation on behalf of the cycling group he owns, Israel-Premier Tech Cycling Team. Adams also emphasized his intention to assist in the rehabilitation of the Gaza border region.
“These monsters came here with the evil, premeditated intent to torture, rape, mutilate, desecrate, take our people as hostages and destroy as much as they could. But they miscalculated: the terrorists succeeded in uniting us, not just in Israel, but all Jews everywhere,” said Adams.
“We will keep our Jewish values and continue to be a force for good in the world. We’re resilient, we’ve been through terrible tragedies in the past, throughout our history. We’ve always come back stronger, and we will come back stronger, and rebuild this place. We are here to stay,” he added.
Adams was joined by Rami Gold, a cycling legend and member of Kibbutz Be’eri, who has built and promoted cycling routes all over Israel and will help promote the bicycle route infrastructure in the area.
This initiative to build the bike path in Be’eri is part of a series of initiatives and contributions by Adams since Oct. 7. In December, he announced an unprecedented donation of $100 million to the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, which lost 82 of its members in Hamas’s attack. In January, Adams initiated a global solidarity ride with the participation of hundreds of thousands of riders in over 40 cities around the world, calling for the release of the 136 Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
Seeking to boost Israel’s image in the world, Adams is known for having brought to Israel Lionel Messi and the Argentine national soccer team for an exhibition game, Madonna to the Eurovision Song Contest finals, and the French Super Cup.
Adams is also responsible for organizing Israel’s hosting of the first three stages of the largest sporting event to ever touch down on Israel’s shores, the 2018 Giro d’Italia Grand Tour road cycling race.
In August, Adams won the 65-69 Masters age category at the 2023 UCI Gran Fondo World Championship in the Scottish city of Perth, conquering the 87-kilometer (54-mile) route of rolling terrain. Days later, he won the 22-kilometer (13.67-mile) time trial by more than a minute.
