Veteran Gideon Kantor moves audience at opening of Liberation Festival

The opening ceremony of the traditional Pilsen event, the Liberation Festival, took place yesterday in the amphitheater behind the Plaza shopping center. The program attracted hundreds of spectators and offered not only an attractive spectacle in the form of parachutist jumps and flights of historic military aircraft, but above all, powerful moments in the form of speeches by witnesses and descendants of the liberators. The main part of the evening was opened by Mayor Roman Zarzycký together with special guests, 101-year-old war veteran Gideon Kantor and Luc Rensonnet, the son of a member of the Belgian 17th Rifle Regiment.

Their performances were among the most powerful moments of the evening. In his speech, Luc Rensonnet praised the long-term care of the city of Pilsen for the legacy of liberation: he recalled that the festivities have been held continuously since 1990 and continued during the pandemic. “It is a great pleasure for us to return here,” he said, thanking the city and the organizers for preserving the tradition. Even more emotional was the speech of Gideon Kantor, who participated in the liberation of the city 81 years ago. “I am happy that you invited me,” he said. He recalled the fight for democracy and the restoration of freedom in Europe and added with exaggeration that he liked Pilsen so much that he would prefer to stay here. His words were accompanied by long applause.

The official part was followed by a concert by the Pilsen Philharmonic Orchestra, which offered a varied program from national anthems to film music to famous melodies from the world repertoire. The opening evening thus symbolically connected historical memory with a cultural experience. The freedom celebrations will continue in the following days with a rich program commemorating the liberation of the city by the American army at the end of World War II.