NJ Jewish News | Local athletes gear up for 25th annual JCC Maccabi Games

by Norm Oshrin
Special to NJ Jewish News

Sixteen local athletes will be among the 5,000 Jewish youths participating next month in the JCC Maccabi Games in Vancouver, Canada, and Stamford, Conn.

From Aug. 13 to 18, eight representatives of the Ruth Hyman JCC of Greater Monmouth County in Deal will compete in the Vancouver games. Another eight from the JCC of Western Monmouth County, Manalapan, will head to the Stamford tourney. Phoenix, Ariz., is the third host city.

Joseph Benun, who turned 14 on July 24, of Oakhurst, will represent the Deal JCC at the “Jewish Olympics,” and his mother, Monique, couldn’t be more pleased.

“It’s another chance to connect spiritually with other kids as a Jew,” she said. “They all share a love of Israel and Torah.” One overarching message of the event, she said, is “instilling how being meek or weak is not a Jewish quality…. Rather, it is strength of character, mind, body, spirit — a well-rounded Jew.”

“It gives me the chills,” said Joseph, who will compete in track and field. “I’m going to be with kids from other places. I will meet them, connect with them, pray with them, make new friends.”

The JCCs Association of North America, which sponsors the games, characterizes the event as “serving a larger purpose than athletic competition [by] promoting community involvement, teamwork, and pride in being Jewish.”

It is the kind of pride expressed by tennis player Steve McMullen, 15, of Holmdel and swimmer Jason Stern, 16, of Wayside, both of whom will represent the Manalapan JCC in Stamford.

“It’s nice to go somewhere and have a whole bunch of other Jewish people,” said Steve. “You can relate to everyone Judaically. I’m definitely looking forward to it.”

“It’s not like I’m super-Jewish like other kids,” conceded Jason. “I went to Hebrew school my whole life, but I don’t know all the prayers.” At last year’s Maccabi games, he said, “I roomed with some kids who taught me about rituals, and I learned a lot about kosher stuff.”

It’s just what Jason’s mother, Robin, one of the coaches, wanted to hear.

“The whole idea is to mix sharing and caring, not just sport,” she said. “I think it’s fabulous.”

Both Shlomo Weiss, health and physical education director at the Deal JCC, and Jack Ringel, physical education director in Manalapan — who will lead their respective delegations — are adamant in emphasizing the significance of the games.

“It’s one of the most incredible gatherings for Jewish youths from all over the world to participate in a Jewish event,” said Weiss. “It’s not only sports, but there is special programming by the host communities.”

“It’s important for the youth in the community to experience their Jewishness through sports and meet other kids from all over the world,” said Ringel.

Ringel and Weiss estimated the cost for each of their participants at $1,600, covering travel, uniforms, training, and accommodations.

According to Ron Siegel, Maccabi Games assistant continental director, the registration fee is $340 per athlete and coach, of which the host community receives $235 and the JCCs Association receives $105. Each delegation has to determine the cost of travel, hotel rooms for coaches, and uniforms.

The Levi brothers — Daniel and Howard, both students at Hillel Yeshiva in Ocean Township — will represent the Deal JCC in soccer at the games in Vancouver. It’s the first time for Daniel, 15, the third for Howard, 16.

Howard’s introduction to the games came in a roundabout fashion.

“The first year, I was talking with one of my friends who told me he was going, and it was a lot of fun, so I decided to go…. I just went as a joke for bowling — and I don’t even bowl. I never had so much fun in my life.

“My second year, my brother and I put together a soccer team. We also had another amazing year. You get to party, meet people. I still see some of them. And I met a lot of people from Israel. I’ll probably go to visit them the next time I go.”

Daniel shared a similar recollection.

“I heard stories about it, how it was a lot of fun, and I really wanted to play soccer” — as he did last year at the games in Richmond, Va. “You meet so many people from all over the United States, England, Venezuela,” he said. “I’m still friends with a lot of them.”

Seth Einbinder, 15, from Holmdel and the Western Monmouth JCC, will tote his tennis racket to the games in Stamford to build more memories — the kind, he said, that “last forever.”

“This is my third time,” Seth said. “It’s just a great Jewish experience and a prestigious athletic competition. It’s nice to see all the athletes get together. It’s not like anywhere else.”

Sixteen-year-old tennis player Adam Rosen, also from Holmdel, was encouraged to compete by his mother, Judi Blechman.

“He did it along with two good friends,” she recalled. “I had heard about it and thought it would be an amazing experience to compete with kids on an international level, bond with them, know their culture.

“He has gotten a lot out of it,” she said of Adam’s two previous years as a Maccabi athlete. “It’s good for independence and a Jewish experience.”

“I got to meet people from other places,” Adam said. “It was a lot of fun.”

Organizing this year’s Maccabi Games became more of a challenge when New Orleans, one of the original host cities, had to drop out as a result of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

“We had to restructure and figure out how to get everyone at the games at three sites instead of four,” said Siegel. The New Orleans Jewish community is sending 35 athletes to compete in Phoenix Aug. 6-11.

Albert Sutton, of Ocean, who will turn 14 on July 26, said, “I love tennis and it sounded like it will be fun in Vancouver. I go to the Deal JCC a lot and took lessons with head coach [Weiss]. I got a lot better and tried out last year. He told me to wait till this year.

“Now I made the team and I want to see how good the rest of the world is in tennis — all Jewish kids.

“They said it would be one of the best experiences I ever had.”