Jewish Athletes: From Sandy Koufax to the Maccabiah Games

Breaking the Stereotype

There is an old joke — so old it has whiskers — that the thinnest book in the world is Great Jewish Athletes. The joke is wrong. It was wrong when it was first told, and it is spectacularly wrong today.

Jewish athletes have competed at the highest levels of virtually every sport: baseball, swimming, gymnastics, basketball, boxing, fencing, tennis, and soccer. They have won Olympic gold medals, set world records, been inducted into halls of fame, and — in moments that transcended sports entirely — made decisions that defined what it means to be Jewish in the public eye.

The story of Jews in sports is not just a list of accomplishments. It is a story about identity, prejudice, assimilation, and the moments when an athlete’s faith becomes the most important thing about them — whether they want it to or not.

Sandy Koufax: The Decision

No Jewish athlete has ever made a more famous choice than Sandy Koufax on October 6, 1965.

Koufax was the best pitcher in baseball — a left-hander with a devastating curveball who had won the Cy Young Award and was the Dodgers’ undisputed ace. The 1965 World Series against the Minnesota Twins was about to begin. Game 1 was scheduled for October 6. October 6 was Yom Kippur.

Koufax did not pitch. He did not go to the ballpark. He sat out the biggest game of his career because it fell on the holiest day of the Jewish year.

The decision was not agonizing for Koufax — he later said it was straightforward. But for American Jews, it was seismic. Here was the most visible Jew in America choosing his identity over his profession, his faith over his fame. Don Drysdale started Game 1 instead and gave up seven runs. When manager Walter Alston pulled him, Drysdale reportedly said, “I bet right now you wish I was Jewish, too.”

Koufax went on to win Games 5 and 7, and the Dodgers won the Series. But the lasting legacy was not the victories — it was the choice. Fifty years later, every Jewish kid who misses a game for the holidays can point to Koufax and know they are in good company.

Hank Greenberg: The First Jewish Superstar

Before Koufax, there was Hank Greenberg (1911-1986) — the first Jewish superstar in American sports. Playing for the Detroit Tigers in the 1930s and 1940s, Greenberg was a slugger of enormous power who hit 58 home runs in 1938, falling just two short of Babe Ruth’s record.

Greenberg played through virulent antisemitism — opposing players and fans hurled slurs, and spiking (deliberately cutting him with cleats while sliding into base) was common. He responded with dignity and dominance, becoming the American League MVP twice and earning the admiration of Jewish and non-Jewish fans alike.

Like Koufax after him, Greenberg faced the Yom Kippur dilemma. In 1934, during a tight pennant race, he played on Rosh Hashanah (hitting two home runs) but sat out on Yom Kippur. The Detroit Free Press ran a headline in Hebrew, and the Jewish community responded with immense pride.

Mark Spitz: Seven Golds

Mark Spitz (b. 1950) accomplished something at the 1972 Munich Olympics that was not equaled for 36 years: he won seven gold medals, setting a world record in every event. Spitz was the most dominant swimmer the world had ever seen — confident, mustachioed, and unmistakably Jewish.

The Munich Olympics were also the scene of one of the greatest tragedies in Jewish history: the murder of eleven Israeli athletes by Palestinian terrorists. Spitz, concerned for his safety as a prominent Jewish athlete, was evacuated before the closing ceremony. The juxtaposition of triumph and tragedy at Munich remains one of the most haunting chapters in Olympic history.

Aly Raisman: Jewish Pride on the World Stage

Aly Raisman (b. 1994) captained the U.S. women’s gymnastics team — the “Fierce Five” — to gold at the 2012 London Olympics and the “Final Five” to gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics. She won six Olympic medals total, making her one of the most decorated American gymnasts in history.

Raisman was openly proud of her Jewish heritage. At the 2012 Olympics, she performed her floor exercise to “Hava Nagila” — on the 40th anniversary of the Munich massacre — a deliberate tribute that brought many viewers to tears. She later became a powerful advocate for survivors of sexual abuse, testifying against USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar.

More Jewish Athletic Legends

Dolph Schayes (1928-2015) was one of the NBA’s first great players, a twelve-time All-Star who led the Syracuse Nationals to the 1955 championship. He is widely regarded as the greatest Jewish basketball player in history.

Kerri Strug (b. 1977) clinched the 1996 Olympic team gymnastics gold for the United States with a legendary vault on an injured ankle. The image of coach Béla Károlyi carrying her to the podium is one of the most iconic in Olympic history.

Omri Casspi (b. 1988) became the first Israeli player in the NBA in 2009, playing for the Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets, and Golden State Warriors. His career opened doors for Israeli basketball on the world stage.

The Maccabiah Games

The Maccabiah Games — held every four years in Israel since 1932 — are the world’s largest Jewish sporting event and the third-largest international multi-sport competition by number of athletes. Over 10,000 athletes from 80+ countries compete in dozens of sports, from swimming and track to chess and cricket.

The Maccabiah is more than a competition. It is a gathering — a moment when Jewish athletes from Argentina to Australia, from South Africa to Sweden, come together and discover that they are part of something larger. For many participants, the Maccabiah is their first visit to Israel, and the experience frequently deepens their Jewish identity in lasting ways.

The 1936 Olympics: A Moral Dilemma

The 1936 Berlin Olympics — hosted by Nazi Germany as a propaganda showcase — presented the Jewish world with an agonizing question: boycott or participate?

The American Jewish Congress and many Jewish organizations called for a boycott. But the U.S. Olympic Committee, led by Avery Brundage, voted to attend. The decision remains controversial. Two Jewish-American sprinters, Marty Glickman and Sam Stoller, were pulled from the 4x100m relay team at the last minute — allegedly to avoid embarrassing Hitler with Jewish gold medalists. Glickman spent decades fighting to have this injustice acknowledged.

The episode remains a powerful case study in the intersection of sports, politics, and moral courage — themes that resonate every time an athlete faces a choice between competition and conscience.

Beyond the Scoreboard

The story of Jewish athletes is not ultimately about statistics. It is about what happens when identity and excellence collide — when the world sees you as Jewish first and an athlete second, and you must decide what that means. Koufax decided it meant sitting out. Greenberg decided it meant playing through. Raisman decided it meant dancing to “Hava Nagila” on the world’s biggest stage.

Each of them, in their way, answered the same question: What does it mean to be Jewish in the arena? The answer, it turns out, is the same answer Judaism always gives: it depends on who you are, what you believe, and what you are willing to stand for.