21st Maccabiah Postponed to July 2022

PHILADELPHIA - April 7, 2020 - PRLog -- The Maccabi World Union (MWU), the world's only International Jewish & Sports organization, announced that the 21^st Maccabiah Games have been officially moved to Summer 2022 due to the pandemic-related postponement of the Olympic Games in Tokyo to Summer 2021. The 21^st Maccabiah Games will now be held in July 12-26, 2022 in Israel. Maccabi USA's experiential Israel education program Israel Connect program will begin July 6, 2022 and lead into the official start of the Maccabiah.

The first Maccabiah was held in in Ramat Gan, Israel in 1932 with 390 athletes from 18 countries taking part. Traditionally held every four years, interrupted only by the Second World War, by 2017 the Games had grown to include nearly 10,000 Jewish athletes from more than 75 countries competing in 40 sports. The Maccabiah Games are now the third largest international sporting event in the world following only the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup. The Maccabi USA delegation to the 20^th Maccabiah in the summer of 2017 numbered 1,131 members, the largest traveling delegation in the history of not just Jewish sporting events but all international multi-sport competitions.

Maccabi USA President Jeffrey Bukantz (Montville, NJ) commented on the postponement, "With the postponement of the Olympics until 2021, the only viable option was to postpone the 21^st World Maccabiah Games until July of 2022. The current COVID-19 pandemic has certainly put sports in their proper perspective."

Planning for the 21^st Games was underway with many athletes, coaches, and other volunteers already assigned and beginning preparations. General Chair Louis Moyerman (Philadelphia, PA) stated: "While we were all looking forward to joining together in the Summer of 2021 for the 21^st Games, we are committed to using this extra planning time to ensure that the experience in 2022 will be even more memorable. We look forward to our biggest and best USA delegation ever marching into Jerusalem's Teddy Stadium for the 21^st Maccabiah Opening Ceremony on July 14, 2022."

Maccabi USA has a strong track record in building Jewish community. According to the leadership team, they are excited to this opportunity to serve the American Jewish community by providing a diverse selection of rich and meaningful ways for people to interact virtually, both during the current time of social distancing and beyond. Dubbed MaccabiUSA@Home, Maccabi USA will be providing a range of free content including sports skill building, educational sessions, relevant interviews, E-sports, and more to those interested.

Learn more about Maccabi USA at home here: https://www.maccabiusa.com/at-home/