My Final Away Game

Yesterday kicked off the official competition for our team and for the Games. We played our first game against Team Israel. They were an interesting squad comprised of mostly Russians and Canadians. Supposedly, their team captain is an orthodox rabbi from Toronto. Regardless, he was one of the best players on the ice! We fell behind 1-0 in the first period despite carrying the play. In the second period, we exploded for 4 goals and went on to win 7-3. For those who remember the Hartford Whalers, the PA announcer played “Brass Bonanza” after several of our goals. It was like a voice from God! I got in the game for part of the third period. It was great to make a few stops and contribute to the win. Side note for those diehards who watched some of the game: our two players thrown off for “fighting” in the third period will be eligible for our next game versus the EU. Yes, a small fracas broke out after one of the Israeli players took a cheap shot on one of our players against the boards in the corner! So much for peace and the goodwill mission even amongst the Jews! Team Israel was a chippy team that was very aggressive with their sticks, elbows and hands to say the least!

After coming back to the hotel for lunch, we turned right around and went back to the arena which was being used for athlete staging for the opening ceremonies later in the evening. It was pretty awesome to see the arena we played in that morning filled with all 10,000 athletes from countries around the globe including atypical “Jewish countries” such as Ireland, India, and Cayman Islands. The US has 1,300 athletes here. Israel has slightly more. Large delegations also came from Argentina, Brazil, England and Australia. There is a women’s volleyball team from the Ukraine as well. They got a standing ovation from all of the athletes when they were announced which was pretty awesome.

As we waited for the athlete’s procession into the big stadium next to the hockey arena, all of the athletes watched the U18 USA and Canada hockey teams play. While our team appreciated the quality of play on the ice, it was just as entertaining watching the other countries enjoy themselves chanting their national songs and singing along in one communal chorus to popular American songs such as “Sweet Caroline” and “Country Roads” that were played in between whistles during the hockey game!

Eventually we marched into the stadium with our respective countries, no different than the Opening Ceremonies at the Olympics. Walking into a packed stadium alongside 10,000 fellow Jewish athletes and being cheered on by over 20,000 spectators who were also mostly Jewish was a powerful experience. The Opening Ceremonies were a pretty big deal in Israel and were broadcast on national TV. Several Israeli pop stars performed. Joe Biden spoke as did several other leaders. The Maccabi flame was lit and fireworks went off. Meanwhile, the athletes mulled around looking to trade team gear. It seemed like the Team USA gear was a hot item for many of the younger athletes from other countries. A young boy who played chess from Turkey wanted my Team USA sweatshirt so now I’m coming home with a Team Turkey warmup jacket!

Today, we go on a trip to the Dead Sea, Masada, and having lunch on a kibbutz.

Below are some pictures from yesterday…