Culture of Israel - Sports

Sports

Physical fitness is important in Jewish culture. Athletic prowess, prized by the Ancient Greeks, was looked down upon as an unwelcome intrusion of Hellenistic values. Maimonides, who was both a Rabbi and a physician, emphasized the importance of regular exercise in preventing illness, on the authority of Hippocrates and Galen. This approach received a boost in the 19th century from the physical culture campaign of Max Nordau, and in the early 20th century when the Chief Rabbi of Palestine, Abraham Isaac Kook, declared that the body serves the soul, and only a healthy body can ensure a healthy soul.

The Maccabiah Games, an Olympic-style event for Jewish athletes and Israeli athletes, was inaugurated in the 1930s, and has been held every 4 years since then. In 1964, Israel hosted and won the AFC Asian Cup; in 1970, the Israel national football team managed to qualify to the FIFA World Cup, which is still considered the biggest achievement in Israeli Football.

Israel was excluded from the 1978 Asian Games due to Arab pressure on the organizers. The exclusion left Israel in limbo, and it ceased competing in Asian competitions. In 1994, UEFA agreed to admit Israel, and all Israeli sporting organizations now compete in Europe.

Football (soccer) and basketball are the most popular sports in Israel. The Israeli Premier League is the country's Premier Soccer League, and Ligat ha'Al is the premier basketball league. Maccabi Haifa, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Tel Aviv and Beitar Jerusalem are the largest sports clubs. Maccabi Tel Aviv, Maccabi Haifa, and Hapoel Tel Aviv have competed in the UEFA Champions League, and Hapoel Tel Aviv reached the Quarterfinal in the UEFA Cup. Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. has won the European Championship in Basketball 5 times. Israeli Tennis champion Shahar Pe'er peaked at 11th on the WTA rank list, a national record.

Beersheba has become a national chess center; thanks to Soviet immigration, it is home to the largest number of Chess grandmasters of any city in the world. The city hosted the World Team Chess Championship in 2005, and Chess is taught in the city's kindergartens. The Israeli Chess team won the silver medal at the 2008 Chess Olympiad, and the bronze medal at the 2010 Chess Olympiad. Israeli grandmaster Boris Gelfand is the current Chess World Cup holder.

To date, Israel has won seven Olympic medals since its first win in 1992, including a gold medal in Windsurfing at the 2004 Summer Olympics. Israel has won over 100 gold medals in the Paralympic Games, and is ranked about 15th in the All-time Paralympic Games medal table. The 1968 Summer Paralympics were hosted by Israel.