Jane Katz came home from Israel this year lugging unusual souvenirs: 13 medals from the 19th Maccabiah Games, including 11 for each of the Masters swimming events she entered, one silver for the medley relay she participated in as part of the U.S. team, and one gold for the women’s freestyle relay. These souvenirs are…
When Jane Katz said she was swimming for the gold at the 19th Maccabiah Games, she wasn’t kidding. The 70-year-old Masters champion, who has participated in every Maccabiah Games since 1957, came home to New York laden with 13 medals. Katz won each of the 11 individual Masters level swimming events she entered, and also…
There are over 900 American athletes competing at the 19th Maccabiah Games currently taking place in Israel. Among them is swimmer Dr. Jane Katz, who broke a record before even getting in to the pool. Katz, 70, is competing in an amazing 14th consecutive Maccabiah Games. While many Jewish athletes have been coming to the…
Ultra-Orthodox women in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, want to experience the joys of summer like everyone else. But that may not be possible this year, due to a lack of female lifeguards at the local Metropolitan Recreation Center pool. With all the clothing restrictions Hasidic women face in the sweltering heat, shedding the layers for a dip…
An allegedly anti-Israel boycott by an Iranian swimmer has set off a wave of recriminations in Israel. The episode started yesterday, when Iranian sprinter Mohammed Alirezaei, rather than compete against Israeli swimmer Gal Nevo, skipped a 100-meter breast stroke heat at the world swimming championships in Shanghai. Nevo, whose first name means “wave” in Hebrew,…
Together, my 11-year-old daughter, Naomi, and I took the plunge. Nervous and uncertain of what lay before us, we waded into the water of the Sea of Galilee and began swimming, alongside thousands of Israelis — young and old, all shapes and sizes. The annual tradition of swimming across the Sea of Galilee predates the…
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