...only makes you stronger.

   Ben Helfgott is one of only two known survivors of a Nazi concentration camp to compete in the Olympics (French swimmer Alfred Nakache is the other) .  Ben's sport is weightlifting.  "Sport is the great equalizer, and I don't think people understand how important it is in bringing people together."
   
   Ben was nine when World War II began and he was soon forced into the Piotrokow Ghetto, one of the first in Poland.  His mother and sister were shot and killed, and his dad perished while trying to flee a death march.

   He and about 300 other youngsters were taken to England as they were liberated from Theresienstadt.  This is where he turned to the sport of weightlifting, at the age of 15.  He thrived as a sportsman, excelling with natural athleticism, a competitive streak, strength and agility, all of which led him to the sport of weightlifting.
 
               

He was the British weightlifting champion from 1954-60, finishing equal-13th at the 1956 Games, and was a member of the British World Championship teams in 1954, 1955, 1958 and 1959.

He won Gold on three occasions at the Maccabiah Games, in 1950, 1953 and 1957.

Having survived the horrors of the Nazis, Helfgott has devoted most of his life to helping those like him.

He was the founder of '45 Aid Society for Holocaust Survivors in the UK, and has served at its chairman for all but a few years since 1963.

As a member of the Council of the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, he has worked tirelessly for restitution and compensation on behalf of survivors.

   That's one inspirational weightlifter!