David Herts, Editorial Assistant The Baltimore team in Tucson, Ariz., for this week's Maccabi Games features a slight Israeli flavor. The table tennis team includes five players from Baltimore's sister region Karmiel-Misgav.

This is the second time that Baltimore and Karmiel-Misgav athletes will compete side-by-side. In 1997 a group joined the Baltimore team in Pittsburgh. The hope is that this will become a yearly occurrence.

"I have no doubt we will be able to bring athletes from Karmiel-Misgav here each year," said Sue Liebman, chairwoman of Partnership 2000, a federation-sponsored economic and social progress program run jointly by Diaspora and Israeli communities.

"We hope to be able to bring a significant number in 2002 when Baltimore is the host city."

Eitan Vider, director of Karmiel school for excellence in sport, agreed, saying, "I hope this experience will be the beginning of a friendship and a long-lasting relationship between two cities."

The idea to bring the athletes to Baltimore follows the Partnership 2000 philosophy of connection, building bonds between Baltimore and the Karmiel-Misgav region. Ms. Liebman said that the Jewish Community Center was an enthusiastic partner when the idea was presented.

"Lynn Baklor (Ms. Liebman's daughter and volunteer chairman for the JCC Maccabi Club) and Mike Heller (teen and Maccabi coordinator at the JCC) have worked very hard to make this work," Ms. Liebman said. "There wasn't a connection program in place for athletics until now."

Mr. Vider said that the table tennis players were chosen because at this time that is the only sport that is offered at the school and is a Maccabi sport.

The trip is funded by both cities. Baltimore covers 60 percent of the cost and Karmiel-Misgav covers the remaining amount.

The Israeli athletes, Boris Berg, 14, Ofer Lior, 16, Yotam Shalev, 15, Adam Tesker and Vider, both 13, will be competing as a team for the first time. The group trains together, but until this point they have played individually. Berg is ranked fifth in his age group in Israel and Tesker is ranked 14th.

"(The Israelis) are far more advanced and more experienced players than the Baltimore players," said Irving Goldstein, coach of the Maccabi table tennis team. "It is a far more serious sport in Israel than in the United States. The U.S. players are just getting started, while the Israeli players have had far more training."

Mr. Goldstein said that he will attempt to partner one Israeli and one Baltimore athlete together in the doubles competition.

"I spoke to the team and we are going to mix the team together," Mr. Goldstein said. "Unless when we get to Arizona there is one terrific team and that puts our team at a disadvantage, I won't allow that to happen. However, I don't expect that. I expect them to be far more advanced than all the American players and I think mixing them with the Baltimore players will make it more competitive."

This is the first trip to the United States for all five athletes. They find it hard to believe that their table tennis ability is what brought them to the States.

"I thought I was going to retire," Lior said as he and the others enjoyed a pizza dinner at the Owings Mills JCC just prior to the Maccabi Pinning Ceremony. "I can't believe playing table tennis allowed me to travel to America."

While they are here to compete in the Maccabi Games, the athletes know that this trip is about much more than competing.

"I want to do the best that I can but I came more to have fun than to play," said Lior.

"I came to represent the Baltimore team but also to have fun," added Alon Vider.

The group arrived July 27 and spent the weekend with their respective host families sightseeing in Baltimore. On Monday they traveled as a group to Washington to see the White House and the monuments. Tuesday they spent the afternoon at Camp Milldale for a cultural exchange with the campers and Wednesday they were scheduled to spend the day at Six Flags amusement park.

Mr. Vider said that the group is "very thankful to the Baltimore JCC for the invitation to participate in the Maccabi Games." He added that in thanks for the warm reception that the Israeli team has received he is hopeful that the Baltimore team will accept an invitation to come to Karmiel-Misgav.

Area Medalists Glow At Maccabi Youth Games

For the Baltimore delegation in the 2000 North American Maccabi Youth Games, it was business as usual.

The group brought 14 gold, 11 silver and three bronze medals home from Tucson after five days of events for teens ages 13-16 that ended last week.

The second part of the games finished up Friday in Richmond and Cincinnati.

The highlight in Arizona was the 13-14 girls basketball team's first gold medal in six years.

"The teams I took in the past were more talented," Coach Brian Yaniger said as Baltimore added to a collection of three silver and two bronze. "We just improved dramatically in every game. The defense really improved and that's how we won."

Baltimore beat St. Louis 41-34, in the gold-medal game as guard/forward Rachel Braver scored 13 points and point guard Stacy Hollander contributed 12.

Alana Yaffee came off the bench to score six points in the final quarter to key the win over St. Louis.

Nina Mandell, Michelle Danick and Erin Dahan gave Yaniger solid defense.

Erin Dahan, Emily Cohen, Danielle Solomon and Tali Levin also played well in the medal round to help their team in routs of San Francisco and Palm Beach, Fla.

One of the top individual performances in Tucson came in tennis by Beatrice Grasu. The Franklin High soph won two gold medals to boost her total to six in three years.

Grasu won gold in singles and doubles in the 15-16 division. Last year, Grasu also captured two gold. Brook Rogers teamed with Grasu in doubles. She lost to her Franklin High teammate, 6-2, 6-0 to settle for silver in singles.

Also in tennis, Nathan Forrester grabbed a bronze in the 15-16 division while Mark Gober brought home a silver in 13-14.

In doubles, Forrester and Harrison Davis beat teammates Matt Jacobson and Aaron Szabo, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1, for the bronze in 15-16.

Gober and Ben Friedman won the gold in 13-14.

In gymnastics, eighth-graders Becky Levin (Sudbrook Middle) and Kate Hayman (Franklin) combined for 11 medals, three gold and three silver among them. In-line hockey Coaches Darin Segal and Billy Kinloch hope this year's success is a springboard of things to come as Baltimore won a bronze medal.

Daniel Baron (3 goals) and Scott Singer (4 assists) provided the offense to lead their squad to a 7-2 victory over Tucson for bronze.

To get there, the squad beat South Shore of New Jersey, San Francisco, Tucson and Los Angeles. Baltimore went 5-2 over all in the Maccabi Games.

Offensively, Baron and Singer received excellent support from Scott's brother Eric, Mike Klein, Joe Mashulem and Sam Stappler.

Goalie Andy Amernick also had a key performance, making 20 saves.

Adam Kessler and David Misler keyed the stingy defense.

"It was a great feeling getting the bronze because they deserved it for the way they played," Segal said. "They really wanted it, so they went out and got it."

In golf, brothers Zach Per (silver, 15-16) and Alex Per (gold, 13-14) and Bradley Nelson (silver, 13-14) each grabbed a medal in the team scramble competition.

The table tennis team "won just about everything," Coach Irv Goldstein said as the group secured nine of the nine medals available.

Five competitors from Israel, representing Baltimore, accounted for five of the medals.

Mike Burdman, a Pikesville High student, and Borris Berg of Israel earned a gold in 13-16 doubles.

Eli Greene finished first in the supplement tournament.

Aryeh Barban and Offer Lior of Israel won bronze in 13-16 doubles as did Alan Pruce in 15-16 singles.

The dance team garnered eight medals, including gold from Melissa Bloch (ballet) and Laura Quinn (jazz solo). As a group, Elisa Davis, Shelby Streimer, Bloch and Quinn won a gold in ballet.

Elul 5760 - September 2000