While the global community was transfixed on the happenings of the Summer Olympics in Paris, young Jewish athletes from across the world gathered in two U.S. cities for the 2024 JCC Maccabi Games.
This year, 129 Jewish teens from across Los Angeles traveled with the J Los Angeles (JLA) delegation to participate in the JCC Maccabi Games, held in Detroit from July 28-Aug. 2, and in Houston from Aug. 4-9.
The Los Angeles teams won big, on and off the field.
In Houston, in fact, the Los Angeles delegation won a slew of medals: 14U Boys Basketball earned Gold; 16U Boys Basketball won Silver; 14U Baseball: Silver; 16U Girls Basketball: Bronze; 14U Girls Basketball: Bronze; 16U Girls Volleyball: Bronze; Tennis: Bronze; Swimming: 7 Gold, 5 Silver.
“Since 2006, J Los Angeles has taken nearly 2,000 teens to the JCC Maccabi Games — it’s a cornerstone program of JLA’s and the JCC movement,” JLA Executive Director Brian Greene said. “The experience of competing and engaging with Jewish teens from around the globe will have a lasting impact on the participants, and programs like the Maccabi Games ensure a strong Jewish future.”
Ari Cohen, director of experiential learning at J Los Angeles, led the Los Angeles delegation. He was aided by 22 volunteer coaches. Joining them, meanwhile, were hundreds of family spectators who traveled from Los Angeles for the weeklong experience, which includes Olympic-style sports competitions; opening and closing ceremonies; community service; and social and cultural events.
Members of the Los Angeles delegation included Charley Meller, 16, a rising junior at Crossroads School, who competed on the 16U Girls Volleyball team. This marked her third Maccabi Games for Meller. Ultimately, the experience didn’t disappoint. Her team won “dirty gold” — also known as “bronze.”
Along with competing in athletics, Meller spent time getting to know members of the Houston Jewish community, including the parents and children in her host family. She also helped make care packages for children in Israel who’ve lost belongings due to the current war in Gaza. The packages included notebooks and coloring pads. The experience, Meller said, “felt very special.”
Matthew Mechanick, 16, a rising junior at Calabasas High School, traveled from Los Angeles to Houston to compete on the 16U Boys Baseball team. The pitcher and second baseman loves the Dodgers and was participating in his third Maccabi games.
Given the rise of antisemitism in the aftermath of Oct. 7, being around so many Jewish teens at this year’s games felt unique and memorable, he told The Journal.
“Even though I live in Calabasas — a huge Jewish community — being there surrounded by all these athletes, they can relate with you. Here at home, I can’t talk about everything going on in Israel, it makes me uncomfortable. There’s a lot of antisemitism right now, and I don’t know if these people agree with me or not. But being in the Maccabi Games, all these people relate to you — everyone around you is so relatable,” he said. “It’s just so cool seeing the whole Jewish community, literally from around the world, in this one big [Maccabi] Games.”
Ultimately, Mechanik’s team lost in a hard-fought bronze medal matchup to Greater Washington, but that didn’t take away from the overall experience, he said. “It’s a lot of fun. Surrounded by all my teammates, the sportsmanship, these games — it’s a great experience,” he said. “The atmosphere is amazing.”
One highlight for the athletes was during the opening ceremony, when everyone spontaneously broke out into chants of “Bring them home,” a reference to the hostages still being held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The impromptu chanting reinforced the power of thousands of Jewish teens, who love and support Israel, coming together, said Meller.
“As a community,” she said, “we just felt stronger together.”
On Aug. 17, hundreds of young Jewish professionals came together for “Summer White Party,” a Tu b’Av celebration organized by Young Jewish Professionals of Los Angeles (YJP).
For more than a decade, YJP has connected Jews in their 20s and 30s through business, educational and social networking opportunities. The “Summer White Party” is one of the group’s most anticipated and well-attended events of the year.
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