rediff.com
News APP

NewsApp (Free)

Read news as it happens
Download NewsApp

Available on  gplay

Rediff.com  » Sports » PHOTOS: Euro teams visit Auschwitz concentration camp
This article was first published 12 years ago

PHOTOS: Euro teams visit Auschwitz concentration camp

Last updated on: June 7, 2012 16:30 IST

Image: Netherlands' players Mark van Bommel, Arjen Robben and Joris Mathijsen (2nd L-R) listen to a guide during their visit to the Auschwitz-Birkenau former Nazi concentration camp
Photographs: REUTERS/Pawel Ulatowski

The Netherlands' national team visited the Auschwitz-Birkenau former Nazi concentration camp in Oswiecim on Wednesday.

The Auschwitz camp was the largest of the German concentration camps built and operated during World War II. 

The camp was liberated by the Soviet troops in January 1945. 

Natherlands will play its first match against Denmark in Kharkiv on Saturday.  


The Italian team visited the museum

Image: Italy's national soccer players walk through Auschwitz's notorious gate
Photographs: REUTERS/Tony Gentile

The Italian team members were seen walking through Auschwitz's notorious gate with the sign Arbeit Macht Frei (Work sets you free) during their visit to the former Nazi camp. 

The gates lead to a museum, built by the Polish government on the site of Auschwitz I and II in 1947. 

Thousands of tourists visit the place every year. 

Italy will play its first match against Spain in Gdansk on Sunday.  


The German team also visited the camp

Image: Germany team manager Oliver Bierhoff, captain Philipp Lahm and forward Miroslav Klose (L-R) walk through Auschwitz former concentration camp
Photographs: REUTERS/Markus Gilliar/Pool (POLAND)

The German national team, led by manager Oliver Bierhoff, also visited the camp. 

The German Footbal Federation (DFB) made the visit last Friday.

Three-time champions Germany play Portugal in their first match on Sunday.

  


Coach Joachim Lowe placed a candle

Image: Germany's national soccer coach Joachim Lowe (L) places a candle to commemorate the victims of Auschwitz
Photographs: REUTERS/Markus Gilliar

Joachim Lowe, the German coach, placed a candle to commemorate the victims of Auschwitz former Nazi concentration camp.

For those interested in history, Germany invaded Poland in 1939 and subsequently destroyed the village of Birkenau to make way for the camp. 

Jews from all over Nazi-occupied Europe were transported to this camp between 1942 and 1944.




Source: REUTERS
© Copyright 2024 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.