Avner Netanyahu, 15, son of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Sarah Netanyahu, received the top honor in Israel's national Bible Quiz championship for youth Tuesday. The girls' champion was Or Ashual of the Bnei Akiva Amana Academy in Kfar Saba.
Netanyahu, Ashual and two other runner-ups will participate in the upcoming world Bible Quiz championship for youth that will take place in Jerusalem on Independence Day, several weeks from now.
The national finals of the Bible Quiz took place in the city of Kiryat Shmona, in northern Israel, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary. The prime minister and his wife were both in the audience, as was Education Minister Gideon Saar. The panel of judges was headed by Dr. Shimshon Shoshani, Education Ministry Director.
Some 12,000 students from both the religious and the non-religious school systems participated in the Bible Quiz championship this year. There were four stages to the competition: the school stage, the district stage, the first national stage (a written test, unlike the other stages, which are public competitions) and the final national stage.
Sarah Netanyahu's three brothers are all former champions of the Bible Quiz: Amatziah Ben-Artzi was Deputy World Champion, Matanyah Ben-Artzi won the national competition at the age of 10, and Hagi Ben-Artzi was World Bible Quiz Champion.