(Courtesy of Israel Ministry of Tourism) The 21st Maccabiah, the biggest sporting event in Israel and the second largest in the world, will be held in Israel from July 14-28, 2022. Held once every four years with the participation of Israeli and Jewish athletes from all over the world, the Maccabiah is expected to include about 10,000 athletes from about 60 countries who will compete in dozens of sports, along with thousands of supporting staff, fans and tourists. The opening ceremony will take place at Teddy Stadium, Jerusalem, with a crowd of some 30,000.
The torches will be carried by five athletes: Tokyo Olympic medalist Avishag Semberg; swimmer Anastasia Gorbenko; Paralympic swimmers, Mark Maliar and Iyad Shalabi, and Jewish-American baseball player Ian Kinsler. The Games’ ceremonial torch will be kindled by Israeli Olympic medalists Linoy Ashram and Artem Dolgopyat. For the first time, this year’s Maccabiah torch was printed with special technology on a three-dimensional printer.
Five new sports will be part of the Maccabiah this year: wave surfing, climbing, 3×3 basketball, motocross and paddle. In addition, after 33 years, the weightlifting contest will return to the Maccabiah. For the first time, all the games will be broadcasted live all over the world via Pixellot, which will allow families to watch their loved ones compete from afar. This year the Maccabiah will host Paralympic Games in a variety of sports as well as competitions in the ‘Special Needs’ category for athletes with special needs.
