Uri Gallin

Uri Gallin was born in 1928 in Ein Ganim

Gallin was born and raised in Moshav Ein Ganim. He was the great-grandson of Rabbi Meir Yona Barnitzki and was named after him. He spent 3 years in a youth group at Kvutzat Degania Bet.

In 1945 he joined the Palmach and later fought with the Yiftach Brigade in the Upper Galilee and at Safed. He then moved to the Air Force, where he served as an air gunner on B-17 bombers. He later did reserve duty as a flight instructor and liaison pilot.

Gallin was Israel's discus champion for 6 years in a row and set several national records. He finished 32nd at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. He was picked for the 1956 Melbourne Games, but his place was cancelled after the Sinai War began.

In 1954 he flew a light plane that crashed into a memorial ceremony at Kibbutz Ma'agan, killing 17 people. A commission of inquiry found he had acted irresponsibly. He was tried for causing death by negligence, and the court acquitted him.

He later moved to the United States and studied at NYU, where he kept competing. He became a physician and was one of the founders of the Technion's medical school. He died in 2021.