Maccabiah

Originally appeared at israelbaseball.org on August 6, 2026

At Ezra Schwartz Memorial Field in Ra’anana, a young and deeply rooted Israel U19 squad pushed the Americans to seven games — a measure of how far the program has come

Israel’s U19 baseball team came within one win of doing something it had done only once before in Maccabiah history: beating Team USA. Playing at Ezra Schwartz Memorial Field in Ra’anana, the Blue and White jumped out to a stunning 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series before the Stars and Stripes clawed back, tying it at 3-3 and then taking the decisive Game 7, 5-1, to capture the gold medal.

It was a heartbreaking finish for the Sabras. But for a program that has historically been overmatched by the Americans, taking the powerhouse USA squad to a seventh and deciding game is itself a landmark — and a sign of just how much Israeli baseball has grown.

The Maccabiah Games — often called the “Jewish Olympics” — is a quadrennial multi-sport competition held in Israel, bringing together Jewish athletes from around the world alongside Israeli athletes of all backgrounds. First held in Tel Aviv in 1932, the Maccabiah has been recognized by the International Olympic Committee as a regional sports event since 1960, and has generally run every four years since 1953, typically the year after the Olympic Games.

This year marked the 22nd Maccabiah, running from July 1 through July 13 at venues across Israel. Originally scheduled for the summer of 2025, it was postponed a full year after the 12-day war between Israel and Iran. Held under the theme “More Than Ever,” the Games were widely described as the largest Jewish gathering in Israel since October 7, 2023, drawing thousands of athletes from dozens of countries to compete in more than 40 sports — making it, by athlete count, the second-largest sporting event in the world, trailing only the Olympics.

The Maccabiah has also served as a launching pad for the professional careers of several players and coaches, including current Israel Baseball Americas CEO Nate Fish and Baltimore Orioles pitcher Dean Kremer, who have represented Israel as coach and player, respectively, at multiple World Baseball Classics. 

“It was my introduction to Israel baseball,” Kremer said. “The Maccabiah provided me a platform, and my career took off from there.”

Fish coached Kremer to a gold medal for Team USA at the 2013 Maccabiah, an accomplishment that proved to be another stepping stone in his pursuit to grow the game of baseball in Israel. 

“It introduced me to baseball in Israel, which has really become my life’s work,” Fish said. “You don’t realize it often in life, at the time, that the experience that you’re having is going to lead to another experience and another experience and when you look back at the body of work from 20 years you realize how important it was.”

Team USA has been nearly unbeatable at Maccabiah baseball across the Games’ history, with only a small handful of losses on record. In fact, prior to this year it only fell once to Israel, which came all the way back in 2013, with Team USA still earning the gold medal. That backdrop is what made this year’s 3-1 Israeli lead so significant, and why, even in a losing effort, Israel’s coaches and players left Ra’anana with their heads held high.

Wayne Stofsky, Team USA’s head coach — who played twice in the NCAA College World Series and also coached the team at the 2022 Maccabiah — didn’t take the series win for granted.

“I didn’t expect to win. I knew it would be competitive,” said Stofsky, who pointed to Israel’s deeper pitching staff and stronger infield, noting there are now a handful of Israeli players capable of competing at the Division 3 level in American college baseball.

Arnie Fielkow, Maccabi USA’s baseball co-chair, was similarly impressed.

“I am very proud of Israel Baseball,” said Fielkow, who himself competed in basketball in the 1997 Maccabiah Games. “Their improvement in play is unbelievable.”

Parents and spectators packed the stands at Ezra Schwartz Memorial Field, cheering not only for a winner but also for what the series represented: the continued growth of youth baseball throughout Israel.

Most of the 22 players on Israel’s U19 roster train together in the Israel Baseball Academy, an intensive, year-round development program for elite Jewish and Israeli ballplayers ages six to 23. Run by Israel Baseball, the program provides professional coaching, pro-style workouts, and a talent pipeline into the Israeli national program. Its players and coaches are a tight-knit group who have competed together for the past four years, largely coming from Petah Tikvah, Ashdod, Modi’in, Beit Shemesh, and Ra’anana.

Many participants are children of immigrants from the United States; some were born in Israel, others made Aliyah just a year or two ago. For many families, continuing a sport their children already loved back home eased the transition to a new country.

Daniel Herez of Ashkelon may be the player with the greatest exposure to high-level baseball prior to joining the team — and he faced the steepest language hurdle of anyone on the roster after moving to Israel from Venezuela in 2020.

“I didn’t know a word of Hebrew or English when I came here,” he admitted.

Herez, who has since learned both languages and commutes from Ashkelon to Ra’anana two to three times per week to train — sometimes sleeping over at teammates’ homes — was playing in his first Maccabiah.

“It is an amazing feeling seeing crowds like that at our games and at the Opening Ceremonies,” he said.

Shai Eichler, 17, of Beit Shemesh, started Game 6 of the series. He was born in Israel to parents who made Aliyah from Long Island, New York. He first tried out for the team “for fun” as a sixth grader, and doesn’t sugarcoat how it went.

“I sucked — but I threw really hard! I couldn’t throw a strike but I threw hard” he said.

Eichler — who after his first tryout was initially put on a development track to refine his control — has loved pitching in front of his family, and called the Maccabiah experience “a lot of fun” overall. He hasn’t decided yet whether or not he will serve in the Israel Defense Forces, but hopes to be considered for Division 1 college baseball in the USA.

Yosef Spilman, 17, of Modi’in, made Aliyah with his family two and a half years ago from Silver Spring, Maryland. He has played baseball his “whole life,” including at Melvin J. Berman Hebrew Academy in Rockville, Maryland and at a local Washington, D.C.-area league, so continuing in Israel meant a lot to him.

Spilman says nothing back in the U.S. compares to what he’s experienced both with the Maccabiah Games and with playing internationally for Team Israel.

“It is such a cool experience,” Spilman said. “It is not like a thing you could get in America — flying to other countries, having the Israel name on your chest and playing with other Jews — it is just an amazing experience!”

Spilman’s parents watched from the stands throughout the series. His mother, Shira Spilman, said baseball made their move to Israel easier.

“We connected with Israel Baseball before we moved here — and we chose to move to a city with a baseball team,” she said. “For (Yosef), it has been amazing. This is where he has tons of friends.”

Freddy Bain, Team Israel’s head coach, shares a similar Israel transition. Having played baseball as a child in Los Angeles, baseball gave him what he calls a “soft landing” when he arrived in Israel in 2010.

“I didn’t expect good baseball here — it exceeded my expectations,” said Bain, who went on to represent Israel on the national team six times, including in Italy, the United States, and the 2017 Maccabiah Games.

Now as this year’s Maccabiah Games head coach, Bain is proud of how long his current group has played together. Losing the decisive seventh game after leading the series was a hard way to finish, but Bain refused to call it a disappointment.

“They show up prepared, they are not individuals, and they want to compete for each other. They understand that they are playing for what is on their jersey — Israel,” he said. “The players were disappointed — but the experience was not a disappointment.”

“Within a game, it is hard to see the big picture,” Bain added. “Afterwards, you can see what it is all about — it is a celebration of world Jewry.”

Bain’s words — that the Maccabiah Games are, at their core, “a celebration of world Jewry” — took on added weight during the series itself. Before one of the games, the two teams sat together in the stands to hear from Yoav Schwartz, the Ra’anana-based uncle of Ezra Schwartz, the 18-year-old American killed by terrorists on November 18, 2015 while volunteering during a gap year in Israel. Yoav shared that Ezra, a Sharon, Massachusetts native, had emailed the Israel Association of Baseball (IAB) just a day before he was killed, hoping to find a way to play while he was in the country for the year. Ezra’s family and community later built the field where this year’s series was played in his memory — Yoav spent years fundraising for it, with support from the Jewish National Fund and the IAB, before it opened in 2017.

A day earlier, both teams had gathered in the same stands to hear Debbie Ziering share the story of her son, Aryeh, among the first Israeli soldiers killed in action in southern Israel on October 7th.

For the players on both sides — and the parents and coaches around them — the Maccabiah was never just about the scoreboard. It was a chance to represent their countries, meet Jewish peers from across the globe, and — hearing both families’ stories back to back at the same field where they’d spent the week competing — to be reminded of something bigger than any final score.

That much was obvious less than a day later. When the Israeli team arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport for their flight to Italy and the U-18 European Championship, many players were trading messages on their phones with their American counterparts.

“The American kids are a great group of kids,” Bain said. “It is nice seeing the kids interact and trading gear — even after seven intense games.”

For Fish, the Maccabiah has become a foundational symbol of Israel Baseball’s growth — reflecting not only how far the program has come, but also how competitive it can be with the best in the world.

“I would love to have a whole new wave of American guys [from the Maccabiah Games] who are joining the national team program and a whole new wave of Israeli kids who are getting good enough to play for the senior national team in the Olympics and World Baseball Classic,” Fish said.

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Originally appeared in JNS.org on July 10, 2026.

Despite falling short in the series, Team Israel celebrated a historic performance, new friendships and valuable preparation for the European Championship.

Israel’s Under-19 National Baseball Team came close to accomplishing the improbable against Team USA at the 2026 Maccabiah Games at Ezra Schwartz Memorial Field in Ra’anana. Before this year’s series, Israel had defeated the Americans only once. This year, Team Israel raced to a surprising 3-1 series lead before dropping the final four games.

Despite the heartbreaking finish, Team Israel had plenty to celebrate. Both teams acknowledged just how far the Israeli program has progressed since the last Maccabiah they faced each other in 2022.

Freddy Bain, Team Israel’s manager, who represented Israel as a player at the 2017 Maccabiah, was understandably disappointed that his team could not close out the series. He said the players shared that feeling.

“The players were disappointed—but the experience was not a disappointment,” Bain told JNS.

“You show up to win—even though the odds are against you,” he added, noting that Israel had beaten Team USA only once before this year. “We played really well.”

Wayne Stofsky, head coach of Team USA’s Under-19 baseball team, July 8, 2026. Credit: Courtesy of Wayne Stofsky.

Building a stronger program

Wayne Stofsky, head coach of Team USA, admitted he was far from certain his team would prevail.

Stofsky, who played twice in the College World Series, coached Team USA at the 2022 Maccabiah, serves as director of athletics at the David Posnack School in Davie, Fla., and has helped numerous players reach the professional ranks through Cannons Baseball University, said, “I didn’t expect to win. I knew it would be competitive.”

He said his players were “ecstatic,” especially since an estimated 80% of them will not continue playing baseball in college.

“If this is their last baseball experience, it was a pretty good one,” he said.

Stofsky described the winding path that brought his team to Israel.

“We picked two teams in June 2024—a top team and a second team—with 18 players each,” he said.

When the 2025 Maccabiah was postponed because of the war in Gaza, Team USA lost 12 players from its top squad, two from the second team and two assistant coaches. Rather than hold new tryouts for 2026, Stofsky rebuilt the roster from players he had already evaluated during tryouts in four U.S. cities.

Then came the war with Iran.

“We lost 19 more players,” he said. “At that point we decided not to bring a second team.”

The tournament had originally been scheduled to include four teams—one from Israel, two from the United States and one from Canada. In the end, only Team Israel and a single American team competed.

“Instead of having two teams of 18, we had one team of 17,” Stofsky said. “But it felt good. Everyone wanted to be here and be part of the journey.”

For Stofsky, baseball is only part of the Maccabiah experience.

“I tell them baseball is just the avenue that gets you here,” he said. “The experience is much more than baseball.”

The two teams spent hours together both on and off the field, including a postgame pizza party and a visit to a shawarma restaurant.

Arnie Fielkow, Maccabi USA’s baseball chair, a former Maccabiah basketball player and sports attorney, agreed that assembling the team had been particularly difficult because of the postponement and the changing roster.

Now that the delegation is in Israel, he said, the experience has exceeded expectations.

“The opening ceremony was so special, and we got to see the Nova site,” he said. The team also visited Sderot and continued “connecting with Israel” through educational tours.

Both Fielkow and Stofsky praised the remarkable improvement of Israel’s baseball program.

“I am very proud of Israel Baseball,” Fielkow said. “Their improvement in play is unbelievable.”

Stofsky pointed to Israel’s deeper pitching staff, stronger infield and several players capable of competing in NCAA Division III baseball.

“They are advancing the sport,” he said.

He also believes the two-team format ultimately made for a better competition.

“Each game was competitive,” he said, noting that several contests were decided by one or two runs. “It was good for us and for the Israeli kids. It gave them a sense of how to compete and what to do.”

Team Israel’s Under-19 baseball players gather for a post-game meeting following their Game 6 loss to Team USA at the 2026 Maccabiah Games in Ra’anana on July 8, 2026. Photo by Howard Blas.

More than baseball

The seven-game series also served as ideal preparation for Team Israel’s next challenge.

Bain spoke with JNS as the team prepared to board a flight from Ben-Gurion Airport for the Under-18 European Baseball Championship, to be held in Trieste and Ronchi dei Legionari, Italy, from July 13-19.

“It is a quick turnaround and not a lot of time to be sad,” he said.

Team Israel manager Freddy Bain in the dugout before game versus Team USA in Ra'anana, July 7, 2026. Photo by Howard Blas.
Team Israel manager Freddy Bain in the dugout before game versus Team USA in Ra’anana, July 7, 2026. Photo by Howard Blas.

Looking back on the Maccabiah, Bain believes the experience extended well beyond the results.

“Within a game, it is hard to see the big picture,” he said. “Afterwards, you can see what it is all about—it is a celebration of world Jewry.”

He said many Israeli players were already chatting with their American counterparts on FaceTime from the airport.

“The American kids are a great group of kids,” Bain said. “It is nice seeing the kids interact and trading gear—even after seven intense games.”

Stofsky, who also spoke with JNS from Ben-Gurion Airport after a two-hour wait in the security line, was delighted to hear that his players were already keeping in touch with the Israelis.

“That is pretty cool. I didn’t know that,” he said. “The players got along really well. They got to the stadium two hours early, so they had time to hang out. They had pizza and shawarma together, and they were trading uniforms and hats. Maybe they were making friends for life.”

While grateful for the friendships and the opportunity to strengthen Jewish connections, Stofsky admitted there was still room for a little competitive satisfaction.

“It is not just about baseball,” he said with a smile, “but winning makes the trip a lot more fun and exciting!”

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Originally appeared at JNS.org on July 6, 2026

Maccabiah Israel Chairman Asaf Goren tells JNS that memorial swims, commemorative pins and even favorite foods are helping athletes remember 18 fallen members of the Maccabi family.

For Asaf Goren, the theme of the 22nd Maccabiah—“More Than Ever”—is more than a slogan highlighting the power of Jewish unity and the bond between Israel and Jewish communities worldwide.

It has become the driving force behind a Maccabiah-wide initiative honoring 18 athletes with ties to the Maccabi movement who lost their lives in Israel’s wars. Through sporting events and educational programming across the country, organizers hope participants will return home as ambassadors carrying the stories of these fallen athletes to Jewish communities around the world.

Maccabiah Israel Chairman Asaf Goren. Credit: Ronen Topelberg.

Goren, 49, who has held senior positions in Israel’s tourism industry, has spent much of his career working in various capacities for the Maccabiah, rising to his current position as chairman of Maccabiah Israel in September 2022. While he concedes that he is not an Olympic or Maccabiah-level athlete, he proudly noted that he hurried back to his office for an exclusive interview with JNS after taking part in an open-water swim in the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) held in memory of fallen IDF Capt. Eden Nimri.

Nimri, 22, a team leader in the Artillery Corps’ “Sky Rider” drone unit and a competitive open-water swimmer, was killed on Oct. 7, 2023, at the IDF’s Nahal Oz outpost. By standing guard at the entrance to a shelter, she saved the lives of 17 unarmed soldiers. Before her military service, she represented Israel at the 2014 Mediterranean Cup, the International School Sport Federation’s 2017 World Championships and the 2018 European Junior Open Water Swimming Championships, where she finished 30th.

Sunday’s open-water competition featured 1.5- and 3-kilometer races, but also included a symbolic 170-meter swim—10 meters for each of the 17 soldiers Nimri saved. Her parents, Sharon Yael and Michael, attended the event.

Nimri is one of 18 athletes with ties to the Maccabi movement who lost their lives during Israel’s wars.

“After the 2022 Maccabiah, we decided the Maccabiah couldn’t be just a once-every-four-years event,” Goren said, noting that the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre occurred between the 2022 Games and the scheduled 2025 Maccabiah, which was postponed because of the war with Iran.

Goren, who spent seven months serving in the reserves during the war, said he was proud of the response by Kfar Maccabiah, the Maccabiah organization and the Maccabi World Union in helping those affected by the war.

Kfar Maccabiah, the hotel and conference center in Ramat Gan established by the Maccabi World Union in 1957, opened its doors to approximately 1,000 evacuees from Sderot and Ashkelon.

“We had schools, a nursery school, dogs, birds, and we even built glamping facilities for Nova festival survivors,” he said.

“We realized very quickly that we couldn’t celebrate sports as originally planned—we went back to the drawing board,” Goren said. “We needed to be together, tell the story, and emphasize Israel, Judaism and sport more than ever. We need the Maccabiah more than ever with antisemitism rising in the Diaspora.”

Those discussions took place while Israeli hostages were still being held in Gaza.

“We needed to find a way to make the stories of these athletes part of the Maccabiah without turning it into Memorial Day,” Goren said. “We wanted what happened here to have a lasting impact.”

Maccabiah Games organizers met repeatedly with the families of the fallen athletes, interviewed their friends and teammates, and sought to understand how each person should be remembered.

“We wanted athletes from around the world to connect with the experience and memory of each person who lost their life,” Goren said. “We want every athlete to leave knowing at least three of these stories in a meaningful and lasting way.”

Commemorative pins honoring 18 athletes with ties to the Maccabi movement who were killed in Israel’s wars continue the long-standing Maccabiah tradition of athletes exchanging pins, July 2026. Credit: Maccabiah.

They created a series of round blue commemorative pins, each honoring one of the 18 athletes, continuing the long-standing Maccabiah tradition of athletes exchanging pins. Among them are a soccer ball for Guy Simhi, a surfboard with a microphone for Raz Mizrachi, a heart for Noa Zander and an orange swimmer for Eden Nimri.

Families also identified a favorite food or drink of their loved one—from Milki chocolate pudding to Danone yogurt—which organizers highlighted during the commemorative events.

“We had a story, a pin and a taste to make sure the impact goes on forever—that a light will glow forever,” Goren said.

Following Nimri’s memorial swim, participants toasted her memory with Limoncello and Danone Pro 25 vanilla, two of her favorite drinks.

Among those commemorated was Adi Leon, a Givati Brigade soldier who was killed on Oct. 31, 2023, when an anti-tank missile struck his Namer armored personnel carrier. A longtime member of the Maccabi Tzair youth movement, Leon was also an aspiring electronic music producer who left behind a notebook titled To Be Read After My Death, describing the values that guided his life and military service.

At the Maccabiah, participants listened to Leon’s original music, watched videos of his performances and gathered in a room decorated in the purple colors of the Givati Brigade.

Goren said he is especially proud that each tribute celebrates the athletes’ lives rather than focusing only on their deaths.

“No one can take part in one of these events and walk away unchanged,” he said. “Years from now they’ll still remember these stories. ‘More Than Ever’ won’t just be a slogan—it will stay with them.”

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Originally appeared at JNS.org on July 2, 2026

Thousands of Jewish athletes from a record 43 countries gathered at Teddy Stadium to launch the “Jewish Olympics,” with moving tributes to hostages, wounded soldiers and Israel’s fallen.

Delegations of Jewish athletes from a record 43 countries entered a packed Teddy Stadium on Wednesday night to cheers from family members, fellow countrymen, Israelis from across society, government officials and a lineup of Israeli performers, officially opening the 22nd Maccabiah Games.

Some 3,000 athletes—from children to seniors and Paralympians—from five continents traveled to Israel for “Maccabiah 2026: More Than Ever!”—which was postponed from 2025 because of the war. They are joined by about 2,000 Israeli athletes competing in events across the country through July 13.

While Israel’s political leaders and dignitaries delivered brief remarks, the evening belonged to the athletes. The dominant theme—felt throughout the stadium and by millions watching on television—was Jewish unity and Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people.

That message came through in musical performances, dance numbers, inspiring videos and commentary by hosts Michael HarPaz and Montana Tucker, who introduced each delegation with anecdotes highlighting the athletes’ journeys to Jerusalem.

Hosts Michael HarPaz and Montana Tucker welcome athletes from around the world as they entered Jerusalem’s Teddy Stadium at the opening ceremony of the 22nd Maccabiah Games, July 1, 2026. Photo by Sharon Altshul.

Determination to be here

The delegations entered alphabetically, from Argentina—with 272 athletes ages 13 to 85 following a journey of more than 24 hours—to Zimbabwe. Host nation Israel, with approximately 2,000 athletes, entered last to a thunderous ovation.

HarPaz and Tucker highlighted stories from many delegations. Australia’s participation remained uncertain until just 15 days before the Games. Austria has participated in every Maccabiah since 1936. Cuba brought 51 athletes, many of whom have made aliyah in recent years. Hungary’s delegation included an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor. India, home to some 4,000 Jews among a population of 1.4 billion, sent a delegation, while Mexico arrived with 353 athletes, including three generations of one family. A father-and-son team from the Philippines switched from squash to table tennis simply to compete. Taiwan participated for the first time.

The United States, with about 900 athletes—the second-largest delegation after Israel—entered to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.”

The United States team at the opening ceremony of the 22nd Maccabiah Games at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem, July 1, 2026. Photo by Danny Maron/Flash90.

Celebration and remembrance

American singer Montana Tucker wearing an outfit adorned with flags from around the world at the opening of Maccabiah 2026, July 1, 2026. Credit: Maccabiah 2026.

The ceremony blended celebration with remembrance.

Athletes on the field and spectators in the stands witnessed the raising of the Israeli, Jerusalem and Maccabiah flags, the singing of “Hatikvah,” fireworks, musical performances, dance routines and tributes to Israel’s heroes. Audience members were encouraged to sing, dance and illuminate the stadium with their cellphones.

Among the evening’s performances, American singer, actress and influencer Montana Tucker debuted her new song, “We’re Not Strangers,” while wearing an outfit adorned with flags from around the world. 2018 Eurovision Song Contest winner Netta Barzilai and Israeli pop star Anna Zak performed a duet, while Eurovision 2026 runner-up Yuval Raphael also took the stage.

Israeli musician Idan Raichel performed with former hostage Daniella Gilboa, and Itay Levy appeared alongside dozens of dancers. Television host Assi Azar and dancer Anna Aronov co-hosted portions of the ceremony.

Eurovision runner-up Yuval Raphael takes the stage at the opening ceremony of the 22nd Maccabiah Games at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem, July 1, 2026. Photo by Danny Maron/Flash90

Some of the evening’s most emotional moments included a video message from former hostage Edan Alexander, who returned to IDF service after spending 584 days in Hamas captivity; the entrance of the Maccabiah flag carried by family members of the 12 Druze children killed in the 2024 Hezbollah rocket attack on Majdal Shams; the traditional Yizkor memorial service; and the traditional torch procession led by Evyatar Zeituni, an IDF Paratroopers Brigade officer seriously wounded while defending Kibbutz Kissufim on Oct. 7, 2023.

Israeli Paralympic taekwondo champion Asaf Yasur passed the torch to Olympic silver medalist Inbar Lanir, and together they lit the Maccabiah flame.

Athletes also recited the traditional Maccabiah oath—“Ani Nishbah” (“I swear”)—pledging to compete fairly and uphold the spirit of the Games.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara attend the opening ceremony of the 22nd Maccabiah Games at Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem, July 1, 2026. Photo by Danny Maron/Flash90.
Danny Maron/Flash90

Leaders emphasize Jewish unity

IsraeliPresident Isaac Herzog, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion and Maccabiah leaders delivered brief remarks focused on Jewish unity. Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar also attended.

“The energy at Teddy Stadium is electrifying,” Herzog said. “There is no doubt that Am Yisrael Chai (The Nation of Israel Lives).” He welcomed participants to their “home away from home” and spoke of partnership, determination and the need to confront rising antisemitism.

Netanyahu began his remarks in Hebrew before switching to English. “If you don’t know Hebrew, study it,” he told participants. “It is your country. We welcome you with open arms.”

Calling Jerusalem Israel’s “eternal and undivided capital” and asserting that the Jewish people are “one nation, one family with one destiny,” he urged Jews worldwide to stand proudly in the face of rising antisemitism.

“People respect only those who respect themselves,” he said. “In the face of antisemitism, stand tall! Say, ‘Yes, I am a Jew. I am proud to be a Jew.’ We will win. Am Yisrael Chai!”

Lion emphasized the bond between Israel and the Diaspora.

“I hope the Maccabiah will serve as a true bridge connecting brothers and sisters in the Diaspora to Israel,” he said. “The most important victory is that we are gathered together in Jerusalem.”

Maccabi World Union Chairman Amir Peled addressed participants by video, while Maccabiah World Union President Michael Siegal welcomed athletes and spectators to the Games.

“We are thrilled that the Games are taking place,” Siegal told JNS. “The fact that thousands of people have chosen to come to Israel at this moment is tremendously important for the connectivity of the Jewish people. To bring Israel what is considered a normal event is historic. And to celebrate sports, mindfulness and strength—we are ecstatic.”

Siegal and Herzog then jointly declared, “Light the torch,” initiating the ceremony’s official torch-lighting procession.

Olympic judoka Inbar Lanir and Paralympic taekwondo champion Asaf Yasur lit the Maccabiah torch, symbolizing the opening of the 2026 Games, July 1, 2026. Credit: Maccabiah 2026.

Families reunite

Many spectators came to support relatives competing in the Games.

The Berman/Schwartzman family of Mexico City attends the opening ceremony of the 2026 Maccabiah in Jerusalem to support three generations of family members participating in tennis and soccer competitions, July 1, 2026. Photo by Howard Blas.

Sophia Cohen, 20, of Miami, attended with fellow students from Reichman University. Having attended five previous Maccabiahs with her family, she hoped to cheer on relatives competing for Venezuela.

“It is such a fun event,” she said. “You see Jews from all over the world. It’s our version of the Jewish Olympics.”

One cousin was unable to compete for Venezuela because of the war and the recent earthquake but instead played soccer for Spain.

Karla Berman of Mexico City came to cheer several family members. Her father, Jorge Berman, competed in the men’s 70-and-over tennis division, her husband Carlos Schwartzman played soccer and her 16-year-old daughter competed in her first Maccabiah.

“Our family is very sports-oriented and very Zionistic,” she said. “I think the Maccabiah, the State of Israel and Chabad are the three greatest movements of the Jewish people in modern times.”

The opening ceremony marked the official start of the Games, although some competitions began earlier in the day. The Maccabiah continues through July 13 with competitions in more than 40 sports across junior, open, masters and Paralympic divisions, along with community events including fun runs and Expo Maccabiah City in Tel Aviv.

The opening ceremony and sports competitions can be viewed on the Maccabiah 2026 website.

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