Carly Knue

Opening ceremonies for the 18th Maccabiah Games kick off in Israel on Sunday, July 12th and the games will continue through July 23rd.  Although there are JCC Maccabi Games held every year in cities around the United States, the Games in Israel only occur every four years. The first ever Maccabiah Games were held in 1932 in Tel Aviv and 390 athletes from 14 countries participated. This year, 9,000 Jewish athletes from 60 countries will attend the Maccabiah Games, the largest turnout to date. Team USA is ready to compete with over 900 athletes from 38 states, and five athletes from our local community are traveling to Israel to take part.  “There is nothing like walking into Ramat Gan Stadium in Tel Aviv for the  Opening Ceremonies wearing red, white and blue,” said Carly Knue, the only Cincinnati athlete to participate in both the 2005 and 2009 games. In terms of participation, the Maccabiah Games is one of the five largest sporting events in the world, and is open only to Jewish athletes between the ages of 15-18.

Liza Cohen

The Cincinnati athletes are all playing on the USA soccer team.  The women’s soccer team is led by Carly Knue, 18, a 2009 graduate of Cincinnati Country Day School. Carly plans to continue her soccer career at Emory University. Carly’s sister Ari Knue, 15, and attends Cincinnati Country Day School.  The final two members on the women’s team are: Liza Cohen, 17, who is entering her senior year of high school at Cincinnati Country Day School; and Alexa Levick, 17, who will be a senior this fall at Wyoming High School. Levick plans to play for Vanderbilt University after graduation.  The lone Cincinnati participant on the men’s soccer team is Ryan Lavigne, 18, a 2009 graduate of Sycamore High School. Lavigne will attend the University of Cincinnati in the fall to play varsity soccer. 

Alexa Levick

“It’s a great honor to represent my country in one of the largest sporting events in the world, as well as show my pride in my religion and the state of Israel,” said Carly.“It will be such a cool feeling to be in Israel and play the sport I love with other Jewish athletes from around the world,” Ari agreed. Representing Cincinnati as a member of the USA National Team is important to these teenagers as they hope to showcase their skills on the international stage. Liza Cohen said, “I am so excited to represent the United States in the games this summer and feel extremely honored to wear the United States logo on my jersey.”

Ari Knue

All the athletes are excited to get the Games underway and compete against the best Jewish athletes in the world.  Carly Knue brings her experience from the 2005 Games, where she won a gold medal, to this year’s competition and hopes her team can pull off another tournament run. 

There is still work to be done if the Cincinnati athletes want to help the U.S. Girls’ team win a gold medal again, but despite the fierce competition on the soccer field, the athletes are given plenty of opportunity to meet people. “I cannot wait to meet so many other Jewish athletes and make lasting friendships,” said Ari Knue.
As the Cincinnati athletes get ready to fly to Israel, here’s hoping that all five of them bring home some hardware.

Ryan Lavigne

For Ryan Lavigne, the international competitive sports environment will be something he’s never encountered before, but he knows what to expect: “When you represent something that is bigger than yourself, like your country and religion, the best is brought out in you. So, I expect the games to be highly competitive and very intense.”  Levick points out, “It has always been a dream of mine to participate internationally for soccer. I am fortunate to have this opportunity to play in Israel with teams from all over the world.”

For more information on the games and to keep track of the upcoming events visit the Maccabiah Games USA website at http://maccabiusa.com/.  If you are interested in checking out the Maccabiah Games Facebook page search for Maccabiah USA/Sports for Israel.