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The magic of Maccabi

  Chicago-Springfield quarterback Robbie Liberman.(Michael Liberman)OKAY, so it wasn’t the Broncos vs. the Bears at Mile High.

But it was a heckuva fun football game all the same, and you couldn’t hope for better seats.

On a steamy August morning at DU’s snazzy outdoor field, the Denver flag football team took on Chicago-Springfield in a quick (45 minutes at most) but action-filled contest.

It was but one of scores of youthful matches to take place this week in Denver, host of the 2010 JCC Maccabi Games, in which some 1,300 athletes from across the world participated in baseball, basketball, bowling, flag football, golf, soccer, swimming, tennis, track and field and volleyball competitions.

 

If all of the other games were as lively and energetic as the Denver-Chicago gridiron contest — and as much enjoyed by its spectators — then the Maccabi Games have to be counted a great success.

 

At DU on Tuesday morning, the footballers were only one of several shows on the bill. In the Ritchie Center, just a few yards away, the Olympic-sized pool was filled with youthful swimmers racing their hearts out while unruly queues of others anxiously waited their turn to jump in.

At the other end of the spacious facility, three basketball courts were filled with six teams — each of which, interestingly and confusingly, wore predominantly blue uniforms — playing high-energy hoops and somehow managing to ignore the simultaneous games going on the next court over.

In courtrooms, hallways, plazas and passageways, hundreds of teen athletes congregated and socialized, their jerseys displaying the names of such teams as Austin, Miami, San Francisco/Vancouver, Great Britain, Mexico and Detroit.

AT the football field, meanwhile, the crowd was modest, perhaps only 25 or 30 spectators, virtually all of whom, it seemed, were parents, grandparents or siblings of the actual players on the field, who probably outnumbered them.

But it was an impressive crowd nonetheless. Not only did they cheer lustily at every successful play — and at the unsuccessful ones, too — but they displayed a remarkable sense of solidarity rather than rivalry.

There were plenty of fans belting out cries of “Let’s go Chicago!” or “Way to go Denver!,” but in between their cheers they happily schmoosed, laughed and chatted with each other, regardless of respective loyalties.

Jewish geography and peoplehood, it seems, easily trumps team spirit — a sports phenomenon that might be unique to Maccabi.

To be fair, some of the solidarity might have been due to what appeared to be shared confusion over the rather unusual rules that apply to formal flag football competition.

This is a form of football in which no kicks — including kickoffs, field goals or punts — are permitted; in which the only way to earn a first down is to reach midfield after three downs, with only three more downs granted to finish the drive to the end zone; in which no lateral passes are allowed; in which the quarterback is forbidden from running the ball.

“What was that rule?” a spectator shouted after one play.

“What was that called?” another cried, after another misunderstood procedure.

The rules, however strange, did result in lively competition. The Denver team, clad in gold and blue, and the Illinois team, clad in red and blue, played a fast-moving, pass-heavy, high-scoring contest that left precious little time for boredom.

ONE of those in the stands was Debi Bush, wife of Phil Bush (who apparently couldn’t make the game) and mother of Daniel, who wore number 4 for the Denver squad.

Daniel plays tackle football in the Arapahoe League’s Eagles team, Bush said. In that form of football, he holds the title of running back.

On the Maccabi Denver team, however, she wasn’t sure.

“I don’t know exactly what he’s playing,” she said with a laugh, noting the wild and free exchange of positions on the field. “He just runs.”

Her son, a student at Herzl-RMHA, absolutely loves football and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to participate in an international competition right here in Denver.

“It’s nice that he’s meeting different kids locally as well as going up against kids from elsewhere,” she said.

The Bush family also discovered that it was nice that they opted to be a host family, taking in three teenage tennis players from Atlanta into their southeast Denver home for the duration of the games.

“That’s been great,” Bush said. “I made them French toast at 10 o’clock last night — they were famished. We’re doing host families night tonight, kind of picnic style.”

A football fan “to some degree” in her own right, Bush wasn’t particularly worried which team came out on top after the Tuesday morning contest.

“They’re just having fun,” she said. “And it’s good training for them.”

Sitting next to Bush — and occasionally socializing with her — were Michael and Betsy Liberman of Northbrook, Ill., vocal fans of the Chicago-Springfield squad.

The Liberman family spent much of this week in Denver, Michael said, but had little time to visit the alpine or urban tourist sites because their two children, Robbie (the quarterback for the Chicago-Springfield football team) and Jennifer (a second-year veteran of the soccer team) were keeping them busy with Maccabi activities.

Watching his son lob an impressive 20-yard complete pass, Michael said, “He’s having fun. He wants to win, obviously, but that’s not the main focus.”

That focus, he said, is Jewish networking.

“Maccabi gives them a chance to meet other Jewish kids from around the country, to see the differences and similarities between these kids. My daughter still keeps in contact with girls from across the country she met last year, the first year she played in Maccabi.

“Through modern technology, you can Facebook or text people and you know what’s going on without ever talking to them. Winning is fine, but sports bring people together from all different parts of the world. They meet people from Israel, from Mexico, from Hungary.

“You would never get a chance to meet those people if it wasn’t for something like this. I’m sure my kids never thought that there were Jewish people in Mexico.”

The Maccabi Games, added his wife Betsy, a board member of Temple Beth El in Northbrook, a lush suburb of Chicago, provides an enjoyable way for Jewish youths to remain connected to their community.

“After a lot of these kids have their Bar Mitzvah, they don’t continue their education,” she said.

“When they’re in high school and doing sports and what have you, it’s very hard to stay connected to the temple. The best way to do it is through youth groups and through organizations like this, so they don’t think that being Jewish is just going to school.”

Michael sits back down on the bleacher, taking his eyes off the action for a moment.

“The athletic thing doesn’t really matter,” he says. “My daughter lost every soccer game last year and she had a blast. She lost her first two games yesterday and she’s already ready to sign up for next year.”

As if on cue, the referee blows the final whistle.

Denver 24; Chicago/Springfield 20.

Liberman shrugs. And smiles.



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IJN Assistant Editor | [email protected]


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