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Return of JCC Maccabi Games a
‘Reset’ for Coaches, Athletes
SASHA ROGELBERG | STAFF WRITER
J uly 31 marks the beginning of the
JCC Maccabi Games, an annual
summer event where more than
1,500 Jewish teens aged 12-16 will travel
to San Diego to participate in the week-
long Olympic-style event.

For many of the athletes, even the
older ones, this summer will be the fi rst
time participating in the event which,
since 2020, was canceled due to the
pandemic. Th e San Diego JCC Maccabi
Games will be the fi rst in three years,
and though things have changed, ath-
letes and coaches hope it will be a fresh
start and an opportunity to reprior-
itize what they believe the games are
all about.

In addition to the games’ 12 events
and the added JCC Maccabi Access
Games for athletes with disabilities,
the Maccabi Games has grown from a
sporting spectacle to a week of cultural
immersion, with many athletes staying
with local host families, participating
in weekly tikkun olam projects and
visiting local tourist attractions.

But in the years before COVID, the
Maccabi Games began to expand too
much, a couple of area coaches believe.

Th e 2019 event’s opening and closing
ceremonies in Atlanta took place in the
Mercedes-Benz Stadium and hosted an
AJR concert.

“Th e purpose of the games is to
get all these kids in one place, who
can start to build a bigger commu-
nity rather than just what they know
locally,” Philadelphia girls’ soccer
coach Michael Keitz said. “So along
with that came events, came sponsor-
ships, came dollars, quite frankly.”
Th ough Keitz said that the games
keep to its core goal of building Jewish
community, its messaging has become
less potent. Th is year, the games have
shrunk, with delegations bringing
fewer athletes than in years past. Keitz
hopes this will show that bigger isn’t
always better.

“Maybe this will prove, so-to-speak,
that you don’t need the monstrosities,
you don’t need the, ‘All right, this is the
biggest event ever held,’” he said.

Girls’ soccer coach Michael Keitz (top, center) with his team at the 2016 JCC Maccabi Games
Philadelphia’s delegation will feel
its diminished size this year. Th e city
is well represented in the Maccabi
Games, as it has one of the oldest dele-
gations, having sent teams for 33 years.

Th is year, 60 athletes will compete
across nine events. All of the delega-
tion’s spots were fi lled, with 30 teams
attending tryouts for boys’ soccer and
ice hockey, making the process fairly
competitive. “We have coaches who’ve been in
the program for years supporting
our teams, as well as many of them
who played in the games,” said Team
Philadelphia Delegation Head Barrie
Mittica. “We really understand the
importance of what Maccabi can do for
Jewish teens — giving them an outlet
that’s diff erent than a youth movement
— who may have not found a spot
somewhere else in Jewish teen life.”
As the athletes gear up for the games,
the desire to stick to the spirit of the
event is front-and-center.

“Everyone practices Judaism in a dif-
ferent way, but we all have this great
thing connecting us, which is an amaz-
ing feeling, to look around and see all
of these Jewish athletes and think to
yourself, ‘We have this major thing that
holds us together,’” said Rachel Kohler,
dance coach and assistant delegation
head. Kohler’s parents started the
Philadelphia delegation in 1984, and
she grew up attending the games as a
child, competing in her fi rst games at
13, 20 years ago.

“Th at is my fi rst real memory of
being an athlete,” she said.

Daniel Weiss, the boys’ soccer coach,
is another seasoned coach, having been a
Maccabi athlete as a teen before becom-
ing a coach ten years ago. He’s also
the co-founder of the Kaiserman JCC’s
Philly JCC Maccabi Sports Hall of Fame.

Weiss agreed with Keitz that this
year’s Maccabi Games is an opportu-
nity to refocus aft er a three-year break.

“I completely agree with the notion
of a reset and focusing on what’s really
important,” he said.

Building a cohesive team with a
strong bond is the key to both win-
ning medals and getting the most out
Courtesy of Michael Keitz
of the experience.

“I always want to make sure that
they go in with the right mindset of:
Th e second you step on the fi eld, we’re
there to win,” Weiss said. “Th e second
you step off the fi eld, it’s Maccabi expe-
rience time.”
Th e previous games in 2019 were dis-
appointing to the team, goalie Zachary
Brunell said. In 2019, the team didn’t
medal, leaving Brunell, 16, feeling like
he has “unfi nished business” for the
2022 games.

But the part of the experience
Brunell is most looking forward to is
not playing on the pitch. He’s excited
to meet his host family and spend time
with more Jews. Brunell sometimes
feels awkward about keeping kosher
and having to tell his friends why he
can’t eat certain things. He’s looking
forward to being around people who
just get it.

“Th ere’s just certain things that don’t
have to be explained,” he said. “It’s like
you feel more accepted.” JE
srogelberg@midatlanticmedia.com JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
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