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Jewish Resources: Feature Article
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The 17th Maccabiah Games June-29-2005
Reprinted by permission of Canadian Jewish News
By MARK MIETKIEWICZ
Seventy-three years ago, a few hundred Jewish athletes met to compete in a unique sporting event in Palestine, the Maccabiah. Since then the event has become the premier sporting event for Jewish athletes – and even a showcase for future Olympic superstars. In addition to athletic excellence, the Maccabiah has also been associated with politics, controversy and tragedy. As Israel prepares to host this summer’s 17th Maccabiah, we look at the Games past and present on the World Wide Web.
The first formal Maccabiah took place in Palestine in the 1930s, but Jews have participated in competitive sports events as far back as the 14th century in Weissenfeld and the 15th century in Rome. More recently, two Jewish gymnasts, Alex and Felix Flaton, won golden laurels for Germany at the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. Three decades later, at the 12th Zionist Congress in Carlsbad in 1927, the Maccabi World Union was created “to foster physical education, belief in the Jewish heritage and the Jewish nation, and to work actively for the rebuilding of our own country and for the preservation of our people.” www.maccabicanada.com/
The first Maccabiah Games took place in Tel Aviv in 1932. The Games got off to a rousing start as Mayor Meir Dizengoff made an entrance into the stadium riding a white stallion. Those first Games welcomed 390 athletes from 18 countries. http://tinyurl.com/9p567
Here’s a great piece of trivia from the second Maccabiah in 1935: “In defiance of the British government’s strict limitations on aliyah, many competitors took advantage of their being in the Holy Land and decided to stay. Such was the decision of the entire Bulgarian delegation, which unanimously decided to make aliyah and shipped their musical instruments back to Bulgaria instead of themselves.” Download from http://tinyurl.com/7olv5
Over the years, the games have attracted some talented though still unknown competitors. In 1965, an American swimmer named Mark Spitz won two gold medals in the pool. “The excitement of meeting Jewish athletes from around the world and sharing with them the universal spirit of sports competition was a matchless experience.” www.maccabiusa.com/quotes.htm
In 1997, the Maccabiah hosted 5,500 athletes from 50 countries. But the 15th Maccabiah will always be remembered for the tragedy that caused loss of life and numerous injuries. Four members of the Australian delegation were killed and some 70 others injured when a footbridge collapsed as they walked over it to attend the opening ceremony. http://tinyurl.com/ceenp
Four of the five officials found guilty of negligence for the bridge collapse were sentenced to prison terms. But Australia’s participation in that year’s Maccabiah was in doubt until Israel agreed to pay $4 million in compensation to Sasha Elterman. The Australian tennis player had been near death after ingesting a poisonous fungus in the polluted waters of the Yarkon River.
The 16th Games in 2001 suffered from a different kind of problem. Israel was reeling from attacks, including the notorious suicide bombing of the Tel Aviv Dolphinarium. The number of confirmed Maccabiah participants was eroding, and a possible cancellation loomed. After last minute negotiations, shortened Games did go ahead, but with only 2,200 athletes from 46 countries.
Some athletes appreciate the Maccabiah for the value its founders tried to instil. U.S. swimmer Lenny Krayzelburg won three gold medals in backstroke at the Sydney Olympics. Prior to the 16th Maccabiah in 1991, he made waves when he announced that he planned to skip that year’s World Swimming Championships in Japan so that he could compete at the Maccabiah. http://tinyurl.com/azejr In addition, he said, he plans to work with Jewish and immigrant children. “I may be wrong, but there might be a perception that Jewish kids are not athletic. Maybe I can change that trend.”
Well it seems that Krayzelburg really does like the Maccabiah! He’s back this month as part of the U.S. delegation and honorary team captain. “I feel that since the 2001 Games, I have really become attached to the Maccabi movement.” www.maccabiusa.com
Mark Mietkiewicz is a Toronto-based Internet producer who writes, lectures and teaches about the Jewish Internet. He can be reached at highway@rogers.com.
Reprinted by permission of Canadian Jewish News
Note: The 17th Maccabiah Games will be held July 10-21, 2005. Opening Ceremonies on July 11, 2005 in Ramat Gan Stadium
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