Downed Israeli flag is returned to its home in Beaver Creek lineup
Vail Resorts reports that the flag was removed for maintenance
On Village Road leading up to Beaver Creek, residents and visitors are welcomed to the resort with flags representing all the countries that competed in the 2015 Alpine World Ski Championship races. And last week, Avon resident Dan Brajtbord, who can see the flags from his home, noticed that one was missing — the one representing Israel.
While Brajtbord said in a phone call with the Vail Daily on Friday that he has “a lot of pride in looking over at Beaver Creek” and seeing the flags, the Israeli flag has a special meaning to him, as he helped sponsor the Israeli ski team that competed at Beaver Creek in 2015.
Brajtbord initially noticed it missing from the flagpole last Wednesday or Thursday and said it “struck him as odd” as it was the “first time the pole was persistently empty.”
Brajtbord’s concern, he said in a letter to the Vail Daily, was “that once again intolerance of others has won the day.”
However, the flag has since returned to its home in the lineup.
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A Vail Resorts’ spokesperson said that the flag’s removal was due to maintenance. The flag poles used on the lineup are “tamper-proof flag poles,” they said. However, the spokesperson reported that there is a point with how the mechanisms work that they need to be restrung and put back up, which is what happened this past week with the Israeli flag.
While this is not routine or regularly scheduled maintenance, the spokesperson said it’s something that happens probably once a month with different flags.
