JERUSALEM — The Israeli women’s basketball league canceled its entire season after local players went on strike to protest a new rule giving more playing opportunities to foreigners. The decision leaves several top WNBA players out of work. This is the first time in the league’s 54-year history that a whole season has been scrapped. Israel has one of Europe’s … Read More
NETANYA, Israel (AP) _ Hall of Fame volleyball coach Arie Selinger is back in Israel and on a mission. After a 40-year international career, he’s fulfilling a vow to build a top-notch volleyball program in the chaotic country he fled to after the Holocaust. Under his strict tutelage and grueling training regimen, Israel’s women have qualified for next month’s European … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) _ Most new immigrants to Israel have traditionally come out of ideology, or to escape hardship and persecution. Jon Scheyer is coming to be a basketball superstar. Thanks to his Jewish heritage, the newest addition to perennial powerhouse Maccabi Tel Aviv is immediately eligible for Israeli citizenship. That means the 23-year-old former Duke standout can join the team … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) _ When Gershon Luxemburg started his boxing club 30 years ago, he was looking to build champions, not bridges. But thanks to a loyal cadre of Jewish and Arab fighters who flock to his stuffy gym inside a converted underground bomb shelter, Luxemburg’s club has become a rare melting pot that brings the warring sides closer together _ … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) — It’s early in a scoreless Israel Bowl and a crowd that includes armed soldiers, ultra-Orthodox Jews and skullcapped settlers waving Israeli flags erupts in celebration after Palestinian linebacker Ayoub Elayyan intercepts a pass. His Gush Texas Judean Rebel teammates quickly convert the turnover into a touchdown and never look back, racing to a 32-30 victory in the … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) —Shahar Peer’s stirring run to the semifinals last week at the Dubai Championships was significant in more ways than one: The challenges the Israeli athlete faced off the court were as formidable as the dominating play of Venus Williams on it that ultimately sent her packing. Because of security concerns, Peer was largely confined to her hotel room … Read More
JERUSALEM — When the popular former manager of Israel’s most famous basketball team killed himself last week, it seemed like a sad tale of a heartbroken man who couldn’t adjust to life after sports. Now it appears there’s more to the story. Authorities suspect Moni Fanan was running a multimillion dollar investment scheme for some of Israel’s top sports figures, … Read More
HADERA, Israel (AP) When Ayele Seteng arrived in Israel in 1991 with thousands of other frail Ethiopian immigrants, he was looking to flee famine and make a better life for his family. Now, he is an unlikely Olympic athlete. After some strange twists of fate that began with an unexpected weight gain, Seteng is heading to the Beijing Games as … Read More
TEL AVIV, Israel — Shahar Peer is wearing an olive green military uniform now, far removed from her star turn at the U.S. Open two weeks ago. Peer, ranked No. 16 in women’s tennis, made it to the quarterfinals in New York. But in a country where military service is mandatory, the Israeli player has other duties these days. She … Read More
JERUSALEM (AP) – Toto Tamuz wants to be an Israeli citizen and he’s going to withhold his soccer talents from the country’s national team until he becomes one. Tamuz, who was raised in Israel and speaks fluent Hebrew, is the son of illegal Nigerian immigrants. But he has become famous for his soccer skills, which have made him the top … Read More
RAMLE, Israel (AP) -Plenette Pierson of the WNBA champion Detroit Shock is used to playing in front of thousands of fans back home in the U.S. This winter, the 6-foot-3 forward is showing off her skills in front of nearly empty stands in small-town Israel – and loving it. Pierson is among the growing number of WNBA stars who moonlight … Read More
UMM EL FAHM, Israel — Riham Agabaria has a left hook that will knock your socks off. Or your head scarf. Sparring in her hometown in northern Israel, the shy 15-year-old lets loose a strike that brushes back the traditional Muslim headdress of her opponent — younger sister Fatma, who is forced to flee to the restroom to rearrange her … Read More
CAESAREA, Israel — The ball explodes off Zohar Sharon’s club and flies into the distance. Sharon can’t see it, but he knows it’s a good one and he flashes a big smile. Two strokes later, he has a birdie. With the help of a demanding coach, determined caddie and dedicated dog, Sharon has earned an unlikely title — the world’s … Read More