Maccabiah Games delayed from next month until 2026 due to Israel-Iran war

JTA — The Maccabiah Games scheduled for Tel Aviv next month will be postponed to 2026 amid widespread disruption wrought by the Israel-Iran war.

The games, seen as akin to a Jewish Olympics, had been set to open July 8, with preliminary activities beginning earlier in July. It would have brought 8,000 athletes and their families and support teams to Israel from 55 countries.

But with flights grounded and no timeline to open the skies, and with a state of national emergency in place through at least June 30, the organizers concluded they could not move forward with the plans.

“Despite our strong desire to hold the Maccabiah in the summer of 2025 as a symbol of hope, we are forced to postpone it due to the complex security situation created by the attack on Iran, the instructions of the Home Front Command, the continued suspension of flights to Israel, and the necessary security measures required of all of us,” Maccabiah’s chair, Assaf Goren, said in a statement.

He continued, “Together with the Ministry of Culture and Sports, and after considering several alternatives, we realized that although we are almost at the starting line, the most prudent step from a security, safety, and logistical perspective is to postpone the event by a year to a quieter and safer time.”

A graphic distributed by the games announcing the delay on Monday summarized the approach more succinctly: “Same values. Same vision. Just a little more time.”

The postponement is the second in a row for the games, held every four years. The 2021 games were pushed to 2022 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new postponement is causing ripple effects across the sports world, as athletes seek to fill their summers and stay in shape. In one example, USA Fencing announced that it would welcome late entrants to the national tournament scheduled for Milwaukee next month and would waive late fees for anyone affected by the Maccabiah cancellation.