Sports

Israel’s basketball powerhouse: Deni Avdija’s meteoric rise to NBA stardom

Deni Avdija has become the fulcrum of Portland’s offense and one of the most productive two-way forwards in the league.

|ByASHER SMITH
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS forward Deni Avdija (8) scores a basket during the first half against Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic (5) at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
Some of the Jewish and Israeli 2026 Winter Olympians, from left: Noa Szollos, Quinn Hughes, A.J. Edelman, Attila Mihály Kertész and Mariia Seniuk.

Jewish and Israeli athletes to watch in the 2026 Winter Olympics

Israel will send nine athletes to Milan for the 2026 Olympic Games, its second-largest delegation at its ninth Winter Olympics.

|ByJACOB GURVIS/JTA
The scene at Bloomfield Stadium was bedlam as Hapoel Tel Aviv players and fans celebrated together after the Reds earned their first derby victory over arch-rival Maccabi since 2014.

Curse is broken: Hapoel Tel Aviv’s night to remember after derby drought - comment

Over the course of these 30 contests that were sandwiched between wins, Maccabi won 25 times and drew five games as it scored 56 goals and conceded only 10.

|ByJOSHUA HALICKMAN
MACCABI TEL AVIV'S Will Rayman (11) has earned an increasingly important role with the club and he was instrumental in the yellow-and-blue's 75-71 Euroleague victory over Panathinaikos.

Everyone loves Rayman after Maccabi Tel Aviv's Euroleague triumph

Above all, the player who contributed to the win over the Greeks was Will Rayman, who perhaps made the most important and critical play, a play that wasn’t even with the ball.

|ByJOSHUA HALICKMAN

Maccabi World Union hosts released hostages, families at Kfar Maccabiah

Maccabi World Union has opened its Kfar Maccabiah facilities to hostages recently released from captivity in Gaza and their families, providing them with a place to recover and readjust to daily life

OCTOBER 17, 2025ByJERUSALEM POST SPORTS STAFF
MAXIM HERKIN'S family watches his release from Gaza this week at Kfar Maccabiah.

Maccabi Tel Aviv fans barred from attending game in UK against Aston Villa

The team cited "a number of physical and safety factors" when announcing that no visiting fans would be allowed in the stadium

OCTOBER 16, 2025ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF, REUTERS
Maccabi Tel Aviv's Saied Abu Farchi celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates, Topola, Serbia, October 2, 2025.

Maccabi Tel Aviv falls to 1-3 in EuroLeague as Holon, Herzliya lose

Maccabi Tel Aviv suffers a tough 92-71 loss to Barcelona in Euroleague action, dropping to 1-3 • Marcio Santos leads with 18 points as the team struggles to find rhythm ahead of Thursday’s game.

OCTOBER 15, 2025ByJOSHUA HALICKMAN
MACCABI TEL AVIV'S Lonnie Walker shoots during the yellow-and-blue's 92-71 Euroleague loss to host Barcelona on Tuesday night.

Blue-and-white bows out of World Cup race race

Mistakes proved costly in the qualifier in Italy, with a 3-0 defeat officially eliminating the Israelis from contention.

OCTOBER 15, 2025ByJOSHUA HALICKMAN
ITALY'S GIANLUCA MANCINI scores Azzurri’s third goal past Israeli defender Or Blorian (5) in the 3-0 victory World Cup qualifying win for the hosts in Udine.

Israeli judokas shine at Grand Prix in Peru

Raz Hershko captures blue-and-white’s 2nd gold, Yuli Mishiner earns bronze among 4-medal haul.

OCTOBER 15, 2025ByURIEL STURM
ISRAELI JUDOKA Raz Hershko celebrates after winning the gold medal in the over-78kg category at the Lima Grand Prix in Peru.

Clashes at pro-Palestinian march against Italy vs Israel FIFA World Cup qualifier

The march was attended by over 5,000 participants according to preliminary police estimates, and preceded the soccer match, which Italy ultimately won 3-0.

OCTOBER 15, 2025ByREUTERS
A pro-Palestine protester with a flare during a march against the Israeli soccer team ahead of the Italy v Israel match in Udine, Italy, October 14, 2025.

Sport court rejects Israeli appeals after Indonesia denies visas for gymnastics championship

The Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected appeals by the Israel Gymnastics Federation to demand the International Gymnastics Federation take measures to ensure entry to athletes.

OCTOBER 14, 2025ByMICHAEL STARR
Artem Dolgopyat of Israel in action on the pommel horse at the Paris 2024 Olympics, July 27, 2024

Israel gymnastics national team appeals Indonesia's bar to its athletes

The Southeast Asian nation said it had denied visas to Israeli gymnasts amid an outcry over Israel's military offensive in Gaza, costing Israel a spot in the World Artistic Gymnastics Championship.

OCTOBER 12, 2025ByREUTERS
European Acrobatic Championship Luxembourg 2025 Israel Mixed Pair takes the Gold with the highest score of the competition.

Less Rhodes, more NBA: Israelis discover sports vacations in America

A new trend in Israeli tourism: Sports vacations to the U.S. instead of Greece and Rhodes, with a significant rise in flights to NBA games and the World Cup thanks to Israeli players.

OCTOBER 7, 2025ByMEITAL SHARABI/MAARIV
NBATrips.

A new world of workouts – with AI: The app that will organize your training

The Israeli app FitBuddy brings the advantages of artificial intelligence to the fitness world: With a smart advisor that answers all your questions and personalized workout and nutrition plans.

OCTOBER 2, 2025ByLIOR NOVIK/MAARIV
Physical Fitness.