‘Israeli’ high schooler loses first place at competition after showing ‘Israeli’ flag

A 17-year-old ‘Israeli’ high school student, Yotam Budnik, won a gold medal at the 2026 International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, only to have his official result disqualified after draping the ‘Israeli’ flag over his shoulders during the awards ceremony.

The incident occurred at the closing ceremony of the 38th IOI on Saturday.

After the medal was placed around his neck, Budnik pulled a folded ‘Israeli’ flag from his pocket and displayed it on the podium, in full view of a live broadcast.

‘Israeli’ contestants had been barred from competing under their national symbols since 2024, following a decision by the IOI General Assembly linked to the assault on Gaza; they participated instead as independent individuals under the IOI flag (a restriction also applied to students from Russia and Belarus).

Organizers immediately convened an emergency session.

They demanded Budnik return the physical medal, revoked his certificate, zeroed his score, and removed his name from the official rankings and website.

“When they tried to take the medal from me, I didn’t agree, so I still have it. They only denied me the certificate and the ranking on the website,” Budnik told ‘Israel’s’ Kan broadcaster.

“The achievement is mine and my own right, their official disqualification doesn’t mean much.” He added: “The law that prevents me from waving the flag is based solely on politics, and I thought it had no place in a scientific competition.”

Organizers insisted he had made two mistakes—displaying the flag and then refusing to return the medal—and that compliance was required.