The First Maccabiah

The first Maccabiah brought together 390 Jewish athletes from 18 countries, including 60 participants from Arab lands (Syria and Egypt), marking the first-ever international Jewish sports competition in Eretz Israel. 

The Opening Ceremony at Maccabi Stadium was a spectacle to behold. 2,500 gymnasts put on an impressive performance, while thousands of enthusiastic spectators filled the stands. The stadium—the first of its kind in Eretz Israel—was built on the sandy shores of northern Tel Aviv, near the Yarkon River. Construction continued until the very last moment, with workers rushing to complete the venue just in time for the grand opening.

Participating Countries: 

 

• Austria

• Great Britain

• Bulgaria

• Danzig

• Denmark

• Greece

• Yugoslavia

• Lebanon

• Syria

• Latvia

• Egypt

• Lithuania

• Poland

• Czechoslovakia

• Romania

• Switzerland

• Palestine

 

A famous photograph from the event captures Tel Aviv's first mayor, Meir Dizengoff, riding a white stallion at the head of a procession making its way to the stadium. Swordsmen led by the legendary Shomer Avraham Shapira from Petach Tikva formed the Color Guard.  Leaders of world Zionism, including Henrietta Szold, Lord Melchett, Nachum Sokolov, and Chaim Nachman Bialik (national poet), sat at the honorary dais, graced by the flags of the British Mandate and Tel Aviv flying side by side. 

As the athletes' parade passed through the streets, crowds gathered along the route, especially near Herzliya Gymnasium. The Austrian delegation proudly carried a flag inspired by Theodor Herzl, the Bulgarian team arrived with its own orchestra, and the small but elite American team—just 10 athletes—was made up of world-class competitors. The Latvians surprised everyone by marching in gym suits instead of official uniforms. The atmosphere was electric, as spectators felt they were witnessing a historic milestone in Jewish sports.

At the time, Tel Aviv was a small but thriving city with just 50,000 residents, within a Jewish population of 180,000 across Eretz Israel. The city had never hosted an international event of this scale before, and yet, its people warmly welcomed the athletes and visitors. Competitors were housed in tents, private homes, schools, and nearby towns like Rishon LeZion and Ramat Gan.

Despite limited resources, the organizers made it work. The stadium had only 500 seats, forcing 15,000 spectators to stand. There was no proper gymnasium, and some events lacked professional equipment. Yet, all competitions took place as scheduled: The running track was laid with coal donated by the Israel Railways; Gymnastics, boxing, and wrestling were held outdoors on a wooden platform in Gan Rina; Swimming and water polo took place in Haifa’s port, with the competition area marked by rowboats and buoys, while spectators watched from floating rafts; The 10,000-meter race ran through Tel Aviv’s streets and along the seashore, where the track was 70% paved, 30% sand.

Athletes competed in 16 different sports, including track and field, gymnastics, boxing, wrestling, fencing, swimming, tennis, table tennis, motorcycling, grass hockey, handball, basketball, soccer, water polo, diving, and equestrian skills. 

Poland dominated the competition (with 368 points). Austria followed (with 281 points), and the United States came in third (with 272 points.)  Eretz Israel finished with 243.5 points.

The competitions were conducted mainly in Yiddish, with some Hebrew.  Registration took place in Immigrants’ Hall, and the Allenby Hotel in Tel Aviv served as the headquarters for the event’s organizers. 

The total budget for the Maccabiah was 3,500 Eretz Israel pounds, yet the event ended with a deficit of over 1,038 pounds. Despite financial challenges, the First Maccabiah was a resounding success, laying the foundation for the "Jewish Olympics".

Advertisements leading up to the games proclaimed, "This is an opportunity that will not come again until the Second Maccabiah to see the world’s greatest Jewish champions!"

And the competition certainly lived up to the promise: Hyman from the United States set a blazing 100-meter record of 11.2 seconds, just one second off the world record; Kessler from Lviv was Poland’s reigning boxing champion; Tennis star Hecht, part of the Czech Davis Cup Team, was as famous in Europe as Björn Borg was in the 1980s; The Gottesman brothers became legends of Israeli tennis;  Among the wrestling champions were Chafetz of Egypt, Hershel of Vienna (Europe’s “Wrestling Artist”), and Kurland and Lazerovich of Denmark.

The First Maccabiah officially lasted only three days, but its legacy has endured for generations. It was not just a sporting event—but a statement of Jewish strength, unity, and resilience. The games celebrated 50 years since the Bilu Aliyah and the establishment of the first Jewish settlements in Eretz Israel. But most of all, the stage was set for a tradition that continues to this day: the Maccabiah Games, the world’s largest Jewish sporting event, uniting athletes and communities from around the globe every four years in Israel!