President Jed Margolis and Andrew Exler at the 2026 ISHA Annual Conference in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame Documentary Wins Award
The International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame (IJSHOF) has received the 2026 ISHY Award from the International Sports Heritage Association for Witness to Munich: The Karen James Story. The award was presented September 24 at the ISHA Annual Conference in Pittsburgh, hosted by the Steelers Hall of Honor and Museum.
The documentary was produced by Exler Marketing, a marketing agency that leads digital marketing for the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. Andrew Exler, Founder and CEO of Exler Marketing, led production, and David Sebo of the Exler Marketing team edited the film. Exler and IJSHOF President Jed Margolis accepted the award together at the conference.
“Karen has carried this story for more than fifty years. Our job was to let her tell it to the world,” said Exler. “Seeing it recognized by the people who run sports museums for a living means a lot to our whole team.”
“Preserving stories like Karen’s is at the heart of what the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame does, and we’re grateful to ISHA for recognizing this film,” said new IJSHOF CEO, Lenny Silberman. “We look forward to celebrating her at our induction ceremony on October 25.”
Founded in 1971, the International Sports Heritage Association is a membership organization that helps sports museums and halls of fame develop, operate, and promote their work. The ISHY Awards recognize outstanding work by member institutions in preserving and sharing sports history.
Karen James is a retired Canadian swimmer who represented Canada at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, on December 16, 1952, she competed in the women’s 200-metre individual medley in Munich. She had previously won bronze in the 100-metre freestyle at the 1971 Pan American Games and silver at the 1970 Commonwealth Games.
Away from the pool, James serves on the Jewish Agency’s Board of Governors and chairs the Local Partnership Council for CIJA, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, where she also sits on the national board. She is an honorary member of the Advisory Board for CJPAC, the Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee. She is a past chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and of Jewish Family Services, and served on JFNA’s National Women’s Philanthropy board. She has received both the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal and the King Charles III Coronation Medal.
The film follows James as a member of Canada’s 1972 Olympic swimming team. She recounts being in the Olympic Village when the Palestinian terrorist group Black September attacked Israel’s delegation. Eleven Israeli athletes and coaches were murdered, turning what was meant to be an international celebration of sport into a global tragedy.
Her account is especially haunting because of how close she was. Returning to the Olympic Village as a young athlete, she encountered the men who would carry out the attack, and only later realized the significance of what she had seen. In the documentary, she reflects on the fear, confusion, and lasting emotional weight of witnessing terror in a place meant to represent unity and peace. Her testimony gives the history a human dimension and shows how the massacre changed the lives of fellow Olympians along with the Israeli victims and their families.
Watch the full documentary below.
