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Host city | Tel Aviv, Israel |
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Nations | 35 [1] |
Debuting countries | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Athletes | 3,500 [1] |
Events | 31 sports [1] |
Opening | July 7, 1981 [1] |
Closing | July 16, 1981, in Jerusalem; Israeli President Yitzhak Navon [1] |
Opened by | Torch lit by Tal Brody [2] |
Main venue | Ramat Gan Stadium |
The 11th Maccabiah Games brought 3,450 athletes to Israel from 35 nations. [1] The Opening Ceremony was held on July 7, 1981, before a crowd of 53,000 and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin in Ramat Gan Stadium, with 3,500 Jewish athletes parading past him. [1] Representative Jack Kemp (R; New York) and a supporter of Israel, marched with the United States team. [1] Israel won the most medals (199), with 65 gold. The United States won 188 medals, 85 gold. South Africa, Britain, and Canada had the next-most number of total medals.
The 31-sports menu included rugby union, [3] sailing and softball for the first time. New facilities for squash, wrestling, karate, and judo were introduced.
The Maccabiah Games were first held in 1932. [4] In 1961, they were declared a "Regional Sports Event" by, and under the auspices and supervision of, the International Olympic Committee. [5] [6] [7] Among other Olympic and world champions, swimmer Mark Spitz won 10 Maccabiah gold medals before earning his first of nine Olympic gold medals. [8]
In gymnastics, American Mitch Gaylord won 6 gold medals; he later went on to win Olympic gold. American Olympian Abie Grossfeld was Team USA's coach. [9]
American tennis players Brad Gilbert (in doubles, with Jon Levine, over fellow Americans Rick Meyer and Paul Bernstein), Andrea Leand, and Jeff Klaparda earned gold medals. [10] [11] [12] Justin Gimelstob was an assistant coach of Team USA's tennis squad. [13] Israeli Shlomo Glickstein, who carried the Maccabiah torch into the stadium for the opening ceremony, won the men's singles in tennis (defeating Brad Gilbert), the first Israeli to win a Maccabiah tennis championship. [14] [1] [15] Americans Dana Gilbert and Donna Rubin won the women's doubles. [14]
In basketball, David Blatt, Danny Schayes (the first round draft pick of the NBA's Utah Jazz; carried the US flag in the opening ceremony), Al Walker, and Willie Sims won a gold medal with Team USA. [16] [17] [18]
American fencers Paul Friedberg won a gold medal for the US in saber, Peter Schifrin won a silver medal in epee, and Elaine Cheris won an individual silver medal and a team gold medal in foil. British sabre fencer Paul Klenerman, who three years later fenced in the Olympics, also medaled. [19] [20] Canadian future Olympian Shelley Steiner won a gold medal. [21]
In track and field, James Espir of Great Britain, who earlier that year had run a mile in 3 minutes 56.7 seconds, thereby becoming the fastest Jewish miler ever, won the 1500 metres and 5000 metres gold medals on successive days. [22] [23] [24] Maya Kalle-Bentzur of Israel won the gold medal in the women's long jump, and Israeli future Olympian Yehuda Zadok won the gold medal in the 10,000 m race. [25] Boris Djerassi of the United States won a gold medal in the hammer throw. [26] Dave Edge of Canada, a long distance runner who later competed in two Olympics, won a silver medal in the 10,000 m and a bronze medal in the mini-marathon. [27] Canadian Gordon Orlikow, who later was a bronze medalist in the decathlon at the Pan American Games, won a bronze medal in the decathlon and a silver medal in the 110 m hurdles. [15] [28]
Swimming for Israel at the age of 14, Israeli future Olympian Hadar Rubinstein won gold medals in the women's 100 m butterfly, and in the women's 200 m butterfly. [29] [30] [31] [32] In swimming Lior Birkan won 3 gold and 2 silver medals. Mexican Helen Plaschinski won gold medals in swimming in the 100 and 200 m freestyle. [24]
Mike Jeffries and Seth Roland represented the United States in soccer, winning a silver medal. [33] [14] Eli Ohana and Rafi Cohen represented Israel, winning a bronze medal.
In golf, American Corey Pavin won two gold medals. [34] [35] [36] [37]
Mark Berger, who three years later was to go on to win a silver medal in the Olympics, won a gold medal in wrestling, and a silver medal in judo. [27] [21] Canadian future Olympian Garry Kallos won two gold medals in wrestling, as did Canadian Olympian Howard Stupp. [21]
In cricket, Alan Ezekowitz competed for England. [38]
A total of 35 nations participated, in 31 sports, at 58 locations throughout Israel. [1] [15] Israel won the most medals (199), with 65 gold. [14] The United States won 188 medals, 85 gold. [14] South Africa, Britain, and Canada had the next-most number of total medals. [15]
The number in parentheses indicates the number of participants that community contributed.
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