Itongadol/Agencia AJN.- More than 10,000 participants from 60 countries arrived in Israel to participate in the next two weeks of the XXI Maccabiah Games, the "Jewish Olympic Games" that were first held in 1932.
After a one-year delay due to the coronavirus pandemic, this will be the largest Maccabiah ever held, with over 30,000 individual competitions in 42 sports. The event opened tonight with the opening ceremony at Teddy Stadium.
"The reason we started this sports event is to strengthen the connections between Israel and the diaspora," said Roy Hessing, CEO of the Maccabiah.
Since 1932, thousands of athletes from all over the world participate in the Maccabiah Games held every 4 years in Israel. At that time there were 390 athletes from 18 countries, today there are 10 thousand from 60 countries.
But this year, there is a greater emphasis on bringing competitions and parties to Israelis, with over 80 events open to the public, said Hessing. The events will be held in Israel's largest sports stadiums to accommodate more spectators, and many of the popular sports such as swimming, motocross, and ice hockey are already fully booked.
Public activities include the eight-day festivities of the "Maccabiah Village" on Netanya's Poleg Beach, a nighttime race in Jerusalem, a sports and technology fair at the Tel Aviv Velodrome, and several parties throughout the country.
The most important sports event in the Jewish world has been inaugurated #Macabedas #maccabiah https://t.co/31MfxqEMC9 pic.twitter.com/rYQijodi8z
— Agencia AJN (@AgenciaAJN) July 14, 2022
Sports fans can follow the live coverage on the Maccabiah website.
Israel will have the largest delegation, with 1,700 participants, followed by the United States with 1,400 participants, Argentina with 800 participants, and Canada with 700 participants. Participants include athletes, coaches, support staff, and in some cases, families. Worldwide, there are over 450,000 Jewish athletes involved in sports events with the Maccabi World Union.