Sport in Israel is popular with a wide range of sports played competitively and for leisure. Football (soccer) and basketball are considered the most popular sports in the country, whilst the nation has reached many achievements in other sports, such as handball and track and field athletics, in addition to a wide variety of other athletic activities. The traditional emphasis toward sports in Israel been on participation rather than the production of elite athletes. Part of the reason for this is the necessary compulsory military service that almost all Israelis perform after turning 18 years old. Another reason may be in the Jewish ethos and psyche that has traditionally considered athletic pursuits as a form of competition. This can be seen in the story of the Maccabees (and Hanukkah) and their rejection of the ancient Greek ideals. Nonetheless, many Israelis follow football and basketball sporting teams as ardently as many Europeans do. In the Olympic Games, Israel has won 7 medals in judo, canoeing, and windsurfing.
From a participatory perspective, many Israelis enjoy non-competitive activities such as swimming, going on tiyulim (hiking trips) and playing matkot on the beach. A game that is particularly popular at junior level is an Israeli form of dodgeball known as Ga-ga.[1]
Israeli sportsmen and teams usually compete in European competitions, although Israel geographically belongs to Asia. The reason is the Arab–Israeli conflict.[2] In many worldwide competitions, such as the Olympics, Arabs and Asians competitors avoid competing against Israelis. Some countries even force its sportsmen not to compete against Israelis or in Israel. Mushir Salem Jawher, a Kenyan born marathoner, lost his Bahraini citizenship after competing in the Kinneret Marathon in Israel[3].
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Popular sports in Israel
Football (Soccer)
The main sport in Israel is football (soccer), which is played amongst Israel's teams, including both Jewish and Arab athletes. Football was played as far back as the British Mandate. Israeli football is governed by the Israel Football Association. The most popular and crowd attracting matches are played in Israeli's Premier League - Ligat ha'Al
Football in Israel is played by men and women, though the women's football league is much less popular among Israeli football fans.
History of Israeli Football
American Football in Israel is based at Kraft Family Stadium in Jerusalem. Currently there are 5 leagues playing American Contact Football. The teams are representing Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem (2 teams), and Modi'in. Further teams are being formed. Involving many ex-pats from countries such as America, South Africa, England and France, as well as native Israelis and Arabs, it truly is a multi-cultural sport. The largest league in 2007 is men's contact and it includes 57 teams which compete for the annual Holyland Bowl championship. The women's league is the WAFI which has 13 teams. The Yosef Goodman High School League has 12 teams, and the Tuesday Night co-ed league has 5 teams. Some 1000 players are involved in weekly football activities. The official website can be found at www.ifl.co.il
Basketball
Basketball is considered the second most popular sport in Israel, after soccer. The Israeli basketball team Maccabi Tel Aviv dominates the domestic league and is among the top teams in Europe. Maccabi Tel Aviv has won the European championship 5 times, in 1977, 1981, 2001, 2004 and 2005. Another Israeli team, Hapoel 'Migdal' Jerusalem, has won a prestigious European basketball trophy, ULEB Cup, in 2004.
Rugby union
Rugby union is a minor sport in Israel, governed by the Israel Rugby Union. Rugby union was brought to the country by British soldiers during the Mandate era, but petered out after the British left. The first game post-independence was in 1951, organised by Leo Camron. A wave of immigration from English speaking countries, and France, since 1967 renewed interest in the sport, particularly in areas with large English-speaking populations such as Ra'anana and Jerusalem.
A national league was set up in 1972, and the Israel Rugby Union formed in 1975. Israel's first international match was away to Switzerland on 25 May, 1981, and ended 9-9.
The Israel Union joined the International Rugby Board in 1988. Rugby union has also featured at the Maccabiah Games since 1981.
Israel has also entered the Rugby World Cup Sevens.
Israel Netball
Netball was first started in Israel in 1999 in a park. Israel Netball has today teams in Raanana, Modiin, Jerusalem, Efrat and soon to start in Tel Aviv. Today, Israel netball can boast of senior and junior representation in a number of international events, culminating in Israel Netball's first international win in Ireland in June 2008. Moreover, Israel Netball is an associate member of the International Federation of Netball Associations (IFNA) and an associate member of the Federation of European Netball Associations (FENA). Netball is a fast, skilful team game based on running, jumping, throwing and catching. Teams may include up to 12 players, but only 7 may take the court at any one time. Each player has a position which limits the areas on the court where they are allowed to move. The playing positions are shown by identification letters worn above the waist, on both the front and the back of the player. These positions are Goal Shooter (GS), Goal Attack (GA), Wing Attack (WA), Centre (C), Wing Defense (WD), Goal Defense (GD) and Goal Keeper (GK). The major aim of the game is to score as many goals as possible.
Israel National Basketball Team
Israel national basketball team has participated 23 times in the European Championship. Their best achievements were a silver medal in Eurobasket 1979, and 5th place in 1953 and 1977. The national team also played in two World Championships And once in the Summer Olympic Games.
Also, Israel basketball is know by her very good Israel national U20 basketball team, winning silver medals 2 times, in 2000 and 2004, and finishing 4th 2 times (1994,2005), 5th (1992), and 6th (2007). Israel U-20 also took place in the U-21 World Championship, finishing two times at 7th place (2001,2005), and 6th place (1993).
Tennis
Tennis is increasingly popular in Israel with professional players placing higher and higher in the professional ranks. Highly ranked players include Amos Mansdorf, Anna Smashnova, Shahar Pe'er (ranked #15 by the WTA on January 29, 2007) and the doubles team of Andy Ram and Jonathan Erlich (world #7 team in 2006 and 2008 Australian Open champions) - all of whom have trained at the Israel Tennis Centers. As of 2008, both the men's and the women's teams have qualified for the top groups in the world - the men are in the Davis Cup world group, and the women are in the Fed Cup world group I.
Ice Hockey
Ice hockey started in Israel in 1986 when the first rink opened in Qiryat Motzkin. Israel has a following of over 1,000 Ice hockey players. Recently, Israel was relegated to the 2007 Ice Hockey Division II World Championships. Currently, the Israel ice hockey season is underway, with six teams participating this year: Metula, Haifa, Ma'alot, Rehovot, Rishon Lezion, and Bat Yam. Roller hockey is also big in Israel, with over 10 rinks in the country.
Handball
Handball is also a popular sport in Israel. Israel's national handball team participated in the 2002 European Men's Handball Championship in Sweden. Local power Hapoel Rishon Lezion qualified for the quarterfinals of the EHF Champions League in 2000.
Baseball
There are around a thousand baseball players in Israel and in the summer of 2007, the Israel Baseball League, which is directed by Larry Baras, opened its first season. It is the first ever professional baseball league in the Middle East. Currently there are 6 teams that play in 3 stadiums. The first and current champions are the Bet Shemesh Blue Sox managed by Ron Blomberg.
Athletics
Track and field athletics in Israel are mainly focused around the Maccabiah Games and the international Olympic Games, where Israel has achieved notable successes during its short history. The Soviet-born Aleksandr Averbukh is by far the most successful Israeli track and field athlete, having won three gold medals in the pole vault at European championships (2000 — indoor, 2002 and 2006) as well as two medals at the World championships (1999 and 2001).
Maccabiah Games
The Maccabiah Games is an international Jewish athletic event, similar to the Olympics, held every four years in Israel. The first games were held in 1932.
Olympic Games
Although Israelis have won several medals over the years, Israel is most commonly remembered for the Arab terrorist attack at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, where Muslim Extremists stormed the Israeli team residence, took 11 hostages, and later murdered them all. Gal Fridman won Israel's first Olympic gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
| Medal | Name | Games | Sport | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Silver |
Yael Arad | 1992 Barcelona | Judo | Women's half middleweight |
 Bronze |
Oren Smadja | 1992 Barcelona | Judo | Men's lightweight |
| Bronze |
Gal Fridman | 1996 Atlanta | Sailing | Men's sailboard |
| Bronze |
Michael Kolganov | 2000 Sydney | Canoeing | Men's K-1 500 metres |
 Gold |
Gal Fridman | 2004 Athens | Sailing | Men's sailboard |
| Bronze |
Ariel Zeevi | 2004 Athens | Judo | Men's half heavyweight |
| Bronze |
Shahar Zubari | 2008 Beijing | Sailing | Men's sailboard |
Sports media in Israel
Sports have been a major part of Israeli broadcasting since the early days of organized sports in the country. The media's influence on Israeli sports has increased considerably in recent years, which is most evident in football (soccer) and basketball, where team budgets rely largely on payments from television networks who bought the rights to broadcast sporting events[citation needed].
Television, radio, newspapers and news web sites are the major channels where Israeli sport is analyzed, broadcast and discussed. Generally, football (soccer) attracts the major attention of Israeli media, which is evident through all of the above channels.
Israeli Arabs in sports
Despite the country's political problems, a growing number of Arab sportsmen are joining Israeli sports teams and contributing to Israel's success in the international arena. They include Rifat (Jimmy) Turk, Najwan Ghrayib, Walid Badir, and Salim Toama. Abbas Suan, one of Israel's top soccer players, is an Israeli Arab.[4] Another Israeli Arab, Johar Abu Lashin, born in Nazareth, was an IBO Welterweight champion.
References
External links
- The Israel Football Association
- Israel Basketball Association (Hebrew)
- Sports Associations in Israel - List containing links and phone numbers
- Sports in Israel - Photos by Lev Borodulin
- IL-Sports - Israeli sports website in English
- Sports in Israel - photos by Lev Borodulin
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