Many prisoners in Nazi concentration camps were forced to fight each other barehanded for the amusement of the officers. Often, these were weak and malnourished men who risked their lives; many unfortunate souls perished this way, forgotten victims of a brutal game. However, there were also those who managed to save themselves, like Polish Jew Hertzko Haft, born 99 years ago in Belchatow. He transitioned from the savage fights of captivity to the glamorous lights of American boxing rings, where his path crossed with the great Rocky Marciano. On the anniversary of Haft’s birth, we recount his incredible story.
A Stolen Childhood and the Beginning of the Ordeal
Not everyone is fortunate enough to enjoy a childhood. When Hertzko was five years old, his father died of typhus, and the youngest of eight children was thrust into adulthood without experiencing the carefree life of his peers. By fifteen, he intended to marry the beautiful Leah Pablanski and challenged the German occupiers by transporting trade goods at night to help his brothers Aria and Peretz make a living. His immense courage even led him to create a diversion to allow Aria to escape during a roundup for the so-called “labor camps”; the Germans retaliated by capturing him, thus beginning his ordeal. After various relocations and forced labor, Haft ended up at the infamous Auschwitz-Birkenau camp and received the infamous tattooed identification number. Despite his robust constitution allowing him to endure privations and suffering, his psychological and physical breakdown was imminent when a transfer to the Jaworzno camp proved to be his salvation.
The “Jewish Beast”: Win or Die
Hertzko was noticed by an SS officer who offered him special treatment: the German understood the war was turning against them and wanted to secure a favorable testimony. As Haft regained some weight, the officer came up with an idea: to make him fight against other detainees and bet on him. The young man would have walked through fire to stay in the good graces of his protector, and so he began knocking out his opponents, none of whom were ever seen again: they started calling him the “Jewish Beast.” Haft’s determination was so great that he even defeated a real boxer, a French POW and former French heavyweight champion, who ended up KO like all the others. However, the clandestine fights were coming to an end as the Russians approached and the concentration camps were abandoned: the so-called death marches began, long treks on foot that left few survivors. Conditions in the camps where they stopped were increasingly harsh, even leading to cases of cannibalism.
Escape to Victory, Chasing an Impossible Dream
During yet another march, Hertzko decided to escape, diving into a forest and after months of wandering, he was found by American soldiers: the war was over! For a while, the young man settled in Bavaria, where he won a boxing tournament for Jews only, but then decided to sail to the United States. Although he traveled under a false name, some boxing managers quickly found him: the news of his victory at the Munich tournament had crossed the ocean. Hertzko was convinced only by a secret hope: if he became famous through boxing, maybe Leah would find him. This dream gave him immense strength, allowing him to win ten fights in a row: his name was now in the newspapers, and some of his fights were broadcast on television. However, the long-awaited call from Leah never came, and the economic rewards were meager: Haft lost motivation, and without the fervor that had driven him, his technical limitations surfaced, leading him into a downward spiral of defeats.
The Last Chance: Haft vs. Marciano
After the umpteenth disappointment against the talented Roland La Starza, who KO’d him in four rounds, Haft’s boxing story seemed to be at its end. An unexpected opportunity knocked on his door: the rising star Rocky Marciano, already with 17 victories, was looking for an opponent. Beating Rocky, who was on everyone’s lips, would have guaranteed Hertzko enormous fame throughout the country. The battle was brief but furious: Haft countered blow for blow, and for a few minutes, it seemed he could compete. However, from the middle of the second round, Marciano took control and in the third, KO’d the fearless challenger: the boxing career of the once “Jewish Beast” was over. Throughout his life, Haft claimed that the fight had been fixed by the underworld: according to him, shady figures had entered his dressing room before the fight and threatened him to lose if he didn’t want to be killed. This episode lacks objective evidence, and even Hertzko’s son, Alan Haft, who curated his biography, never believed his father’s account on this point.
An Incredible Reunion to Close the Circle
After hanging up his gloves and abandoning the hope of reuniting with his first love, Haft married, had three children, and opened a small fruit and vegetable store. As incredible as it may seem, Hertzko and Leah were destined to meet one last time. In 1963, the ex-boxer received a call from the Belchatow survivors’ association: Leah Pablanski lived in Miami with her husband and used his surname: Lieberman. Haft didn’t hesitate; he took his family on vacation to Florida and, after forcing his son Alan to call every Lieberman in the phone book, he got the longed-for appointment. The Leah he met was very different from the one of his youth: cancer had reduced her to the brink of death, so much so that she lived confined to her room and didn’t want to be seen by anyone except her husband. But for her Hertzko, she made an exception: the two walked in the garden and exchanged their final words of affection. Then, our hero returned to his life with the feeling of having finally closed the circle of his adventurous existence.