Basketball Hall of Fame Welcomes Israeli Superstars

Here’s your chance to meet the top-ranked player who turned down a spot in the NBA draft to join the fledgling Maccabi Tel Aviv Team — and hear his story.

“Hoop it Up for Israel! Celebrate Israel’s 60th Birthday” fills the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, MA on Sunday, May 18 from 12:00 – 4:00 PM. In the spotlight will be the legendary Tal Brody, along with fellow Maccabi great Mickey Berkowitz and Shimon Mizrahi who, as Chairman of Maccabi Tel Aviv Basketball Club, was ranked by Time as one of the world’s 50 most important sports executives.

Not only will fans get to hear from these consummate athletes who have played such dramatic roles in the history of both basketball and Israel at a 2:30PM presentation, they’ll also have the opportunity to shoot hoops on Center Court at the Hall of Fame, enjoy a day of family entertainment, authentic kosher Israeli food and heavily discounted admission to the Hall of Fame.

A BONUS: Witnessing the unveiling of the new Hall of Fame exhibit, “Putting Israel on the Map; the Macabbi Tel Aviv Story,” boasting historic footage, European Cups, team jerseys, photos documenting the Cold War-defying Maccabi Team and more. The exhibit, remaining up until September, promises to attract countless Berkshires summer tourists.

At only 2½ hours from New York City and 1½ from Boston, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame draws fans from across the East Coast.

Tickets for this special day cost $6 for adults and $3 for kids 15 and under (4 and under are free) at the door on Sunday, May 18 ONLY. In honor of Israel’s birthday, this price admits visitors to not only the event and the new exhibit, but to the entire Basketball Hall of Fame (usually costing $16.99 for adults and $11.99 for kids).

“Hoop it Up for Israel!” is sponsored by the Anna P. Housen Israel Desk of the Jewish Federation of Western Massachusetts with additional support from the Harold Grinspoon Foundation and individual donors.

For more information, call the Federation at (413) 737-4313 or visit www.jewishwesternmass.org.

Note: Advance tickets ($5 adults, $3 kids 5-15) are available at the Springfield JCC, the Yiddish Book Center Bookstore in Amherst or by calling 413.231.5513 at the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Israel’s Major League Celebration

To celebrate Israel@60, we’re taking the party to the big leagues. The New York Mets are hosting a special evening at Shea Stadium on 29 May that will feature Israeli entertainment, dancing, and other surprises as well as, of course, baseball.

For more information and a ticket order form, click here.

Israeli Tennis Has Global Bounce

A positive sports update from ESPN:

When it comes to the Israeli delegation of tennis players, they are small in number but strong in loyalty and determination, most especially for their homeland.

For the three Israeli athletes — recent Australian Open doubles champions Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram, and top 20-ranked Shahar Peer — fulfilling their naturally appointed role as Israeli world ambassadors is all pleasure and never a burden.

It has become the norm that wherever the ATP or WTA tours might be on a given week, the Israeli players will receive enthusiastic support from the local Jewish community.

On the eve of this week’s Sony Ericsson Open, which got under way Wednesday, the three prominent Israelis gathered to take part in a special ceremony to honor their achievements at Beth David Congregation, a conservative temple located in the heart of Miami.

Erlich and Ram became the first Israelis to win a Grand Slam doubles title with their success Down Under, although it should be mentioned that Ram had previously reeled in two mixed-doubles trophies at majors. As for Peer, she recently made history by becoming the first Israeli player to compete in an Arab country when she played the Doha, Qatar, tournament in February, reaching the quarterfinals.

Continue reading Israeli Tennis Has Global Bounce…

Tennis Star Buys Israeli

Despite getting a cool reception earlier this month during Fed Cup competition, Maria Sharapova, among the top women’s tennis players, just bought a house in Netanya. We don’t see her joining the Israeli team any time soon, but hey, one never knows.
Here’s the Haaretz take on the situation.

Trip to Israel a home run for NY Mets’ manager

President Bush’s visit to Israel distracted everyone from a different type of diplomacy at work. Omar Minaya, the New York Mets’ general manager, visited the Holy Land recently with a team of sports and business people to learn about life and baseball in Israel.

“I can happily report there were Mets fans in Israel,” he said. “People came up to me in the airport and said, ‘Go Mets.’ They also said, ‘Have a good year, but get more pitching.’ ”

Click here to read the story.

“Racing toward a new understanding in Israel”

And now some good news from our friends at Israel 21c:

Racing toward a new understanding in Israel
By Nicky Blackburn November 15, 2007

Aric Lapter and Rasheed Nashashibi aren’t political activists or peace campaigners. They don’t take part in rallies or demonstrations. They are just a couple of guys who are passionate about motor racing and who share a dream to race Formula One cars. The only hitch is that Lapter is Israeli and Nashashibi is a Palestinian. However the pair have decided to exploit their differences by racing together in the British Formula Vee Championship next year in an effort not just to further their dream, but also to take a stand for peace.

“At some point you have to change the situation,” says 31-year-old Lapter, an engineer and single-seater racer. “There are so many negative things occurring in this region, you just have to do something positive that will change the balance. Right now there is nothing to hope for, and there should be something to hope for. People need it. So many people talk about peace, but we believe in just getting on and doing it. We want to prove that Israelis and Palestinians can collaborate together and work as a team.”

Continue reading “Racing toward a new understanding in Israel”…

Maccabi Knicks Israel Festival

Here’s a video of the Israel Festival at Madison Square Garden before the NY Knicks crushed our beloved Maccabi. The 5 contest finalists were screened during the festival and we received thousands of votes, which we’re still counting. We should be able to announce the winner soon!

Maccabi Practice for Knicks Showdown

Ahead of tomorrow’s anticipated game between Maccabi Tel Aviv and the NY Knicks, our trusty correspondents went to Maccabi’s open practice to get a look at the team to beat.

You Tube Contest Finalists Announced

After fierce competition and loads of entries, we have selected our five finalists (see below) whose videos will be shown at Madison Square Garden at the Israel Festival during the Knicks Maccabi Tel Aviv Exhibition Basketball Game benefiting Migdal Ohr. During the Israel Festival, which will be in full swing before the game in MSG, the audience will be asked to select their favorite video whose creator will be awarded by the America Israel Friendship League with a round trip flight from Israel to NY or NY to Israel.

Israel’s Maccabi Elite Tel Aviv faces off against the Knicks October 11th at 7:00PM in an exhibition game at Madison Square Garden to benefit Migdal Ohr. Maccabi became the first international team to win on North American soil in 2005 when they defeated the Toronto Raptors at the Air Canada Centre.

The Israel festival begins at 5:30PM featuring Israeli music, face painters, stilt walkers, balloon twisters, and most importantly- our video finalists. Remember, you must purchase a ticket for the game to join the festival and vote on your favorite video.

Tickets for the exhibition game can be purchased at TicketMaster outlets, the Madison Square Garden Box Office and nyknicks.com.

And without further ado, here are our finalists:

Haggai - Israel- The Place to be

Amir Ragpoker - Maccabi-Knicks movie

Joel Leyden - Israel Tourism Holy Land Jerusalem

Zohar & Ran- Israel: 24/7

Ken - Israel: A Layered Land

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Found Lost at Sea

And for some good news today from the NYT:

October 9, 2007

Israeli, Italian Survive 8 Days on Raft
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MUMBAI, India (AP) — An Israeli woman and an Italian man survived on a life raft for eight days in the Arabian Sea after their yacht sank in a storm, the Indian coast guard said Tuesday.

The couple, identified as Libi Belozerzki, 27, and Pierpaolo Mori, 35, set out from the Maldives on a yacht planning to sail to the Red Sea, but their boat overturned in a late monsoon storm, said Commandant Raj Putran of the Indian coast guard.

Putran said ships in the area were told to look out for the missing sailors after the Rome Maritime Rescue Coordination Center lost contact with them after Sept. 24.

A Belgian tug sighted them and picked them up on Oct. 3, he said. ‘’The yacht had a life raft on board and they survived because they had emergency rations and water.'’

Continue reading Found Lost at Sea…