Jewish Athletes

Shaul Ladany (seated, left) and Jeremy Schaap (seated, right) in Tel Aviv. (Frank Saraceno/ via JTA)

September 22, 2022, 12:26 am

ESPN documentary focuses on Holocaust and Munich Olympics survivor Shaul Ladany

The latest episode of the Emmy Award-winning ‘E:60’ series tells the story of a man with tenacity that characterizes his survival as well as the sport he chose

By jacob gurvis

JJ Harel shows off his AAU medals. (Lucy Harel/via JTA)

September 18, 2022, 5:12 pm

14-year-old eyes 2028 Olympic high jump team, but under which flag?

JJ Harel needs to decide whether, if he gets there, to march into the Olympic stadium under the American, Australian or Israeli flag

By Tom Tugend

From left: Michael Dunn, Anthony Firsker, A.J. Dillon, Greg Joseph and Jake Curhan are five NFL players to watch this season. (Getty Images/Design by Grace Yagel via JTA)

September 9, 2022, 3:40 am

Jewish players to watch as NFL’s 2022-2023 season kicks off

Jake Curhan, AJ Dillon, Michael Dunn, Anthony Firkser and Josh Rosen seek to climb depth charts while Greg Joseph aims to build on last year’s performance as Vikings star kicker

By jacob gurvis

George 'Goody' Rosen, a baseball player with the Brooklyn Dodgers, is shown ready to swing the bat. (Getty Images/ via JTA)

August 17, 2022, 4:34 am

10 historical Jewish baseball players you may not know – but should

Sandy Koufax and Hank Greenberg will shine on forever in American Jewish lore, but these lesser-known heroes made an indelible imprint on 20th-century baseball, too

By Caleb Friedman

Argentina's 35-plus soccer squad celebrates winning gold at the Maccabiah Games in Israel. (Courtesy of FACCMA/via JTA)

July 30, 2022, 3:38 am

At the ‘Jewish Olympics,’ scores of Argentine athletes play under other flags

Thanks to rules on players with multiple citizenships, Maccabiah 2022 sees smaller delegations bolstered by a nation with some of the highest-quality Jewish players in the world

By Juan Melamed

When Adam Henry lost his mother Judy, the Maccabiah Games helped provide comfort. (Courtesy: Jack Wiener/via JTA)

July 27, 2022, 6:13 am

How the Maccabiah Games supported a Jewish family in the face of tragedy

A gold medal from a 2017 competition that soccer player Adam Henry was unable to compete in reminds the athlete of the communal support he received after suddenly losing his mom

By jacob gurvis

A photo depicting Kurt Landauer is shown at an exhibition titled 'Players, Fighters and Legends - Jews in the German football and at the Bayern Munich' at the FC Bayern Erlebniswelt museum in 2015. (Christof Stache/AFP via Getty Images/via JTA)

July 23, 2022, 5:31 am

How a Holocaust survivor helped make Bayern Munich a soccer powerhouse

As the club celebrates unprecedented 10th consecutive league title, fans remember Kurt Landauer, who steered the team to success after WWII but fell into obscurity until recently

By Julian Voloj

Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Mitchell Schwartz (71) blocks during an NFL football game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers, September 20, 2020, in Inglewood, California. (AP Photo/Peter Joneleit)

July 21, 2022, 2:49 am

Jewish Super Bowl champion Mitchell Schwartz retires from the NFL

The offensive tackle, who played 7,894 consecutive snaps, makes his retirement official two years after a career-derailing injury

By jacob gurvis

Moshe 'MB' Klyman, right, with his friend Naftali Horowitz in Montreal during the 2018 Concordia Cup tournament. (Courtesy)

July 18, 2022, 4:00 pm

Orthodox wrestler from Teaneck takes to mat in Beersheba for 21st Maccabiah Games

Moshe ‘MB’ Klyman was the only Sabbath observant athlete in his hotel when he last wrestled for Canada at the ‘Jewish Olympics’; this year he’s aiming to take gold for Team USA

By Charlie Summers

From left: Alan, Diego, and Eugenio Garfinkle in an undated family photo in Montevideo, Uruguay. (Courtesy Eugenio Garfinkle)

July 17, 2022, 2:14 pm

3 generations of Uruguayan athletes suit up for abuelo’s ‘bar mitzvah’ Maccabiah

82-year-old Eugenio Garfinkle takes to the tennis courts in his 13th appearance at the Jewish Olympics, while his son and grandson represent on the football field

By Melanie Lidman

Illustrative: The Israeli Delegation takes part in the opening ceremony of the 20th Maccabiah Games in Jerusalem, July 6, 2017. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

July 14, 2022, 7:47 am

As 21st ‘Jewish Olympics’ kick off in Israel, organizers set sights on wooing sabras

Quadrennial games officially begin Thursday and will see 30,000 individual competitions across 42 sports over the next two weeks, while a team of ‘olim’ makes its debut appearance

By Melanie Lidman

Sandy Koufax, left, with sculptor Branly Cadet. (Jacob Gurvis via JTA)

June 22, 2022, 11:43 am

Jewish baseball legend Sandy Koufax immortalized with a statue

Koufax’s Jewish identity — and his famous Yom Kippur sit-out — are highlighted alongside his many career accolades during an unveiling ceremony at Dodger Stadium

By jacob gurvis

Team Israel's Danny Valencia high-fives teammates in this undated photo. (Courtesy IAB)

June 12, 2022, 4:17 am

Israel Baseball swings for the fences, building the field in hopes players come

After a strong 2021 Olympic showing, a new regulation field is nearly done and 4 youth teams will play in Europe this summer – but there’s still a struggle to find homegrown talent

By Steve Leibowitz

San Francisco Giants' Gabe Kapler walks to the dugout prior to a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, May 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Aaron Doster)

June 10, 2022, 4:38 am

MLB’s Gabe Kapler follows a Jewish sports tradition with National Anthem protest

From Hank Greenberg to Aly Raisman, Jewish athletes have often spoken up against injustice. Here’s a short history of others who have stood up for their values

By jacob gurvis

Isaac Berger, left, at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. (Central Press/Hulton Archive/Getty Images via JTA)

June 8, 2022, 6:01 am

Jewish featherweight champion, Olympic medalist Isaac ‘Ike’ Berger dead at 85

Born in 1936 in British Mandatory Palestine, Berger was raised by a Hasidic family in Jerusalem before moving to the US in 1949 where his athletic career took off

By jacob gurvis