Israel Active

Thousands of runners took to the streets for the 12th Jerusalem Winner Marathon races. Sharon’s photo essay shows that most of the participants were running to raise money for good causes and didn’t worry too much about their finish time or position.

With a 5-1 victory over hosts Iceland, Israel won the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship Division III Group A, ahead of Iceland, Turkiye, Mexico, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and Luxembourg. They have now been promoted to Division II in which they last competed in 2008.

52-year-old Diva Hatami won a medal at the World Championships for standup paddling (SUP). She overcame a serious accident, childhood disorders and many other life challenges.  She helped her mother survive cancer and hopes to inspire others.

The black-faced bunting - an extremely small songbird weighing roughly just 17 grams, was sighted for only the second time in Israel. It normally resides in eastern Siberia, northern Mongolia north-eastern China and was some thousands of miles off course.

Selected nominees for this year’s Academy Awards received a gift bag worth $126,000 (if the recipient uses all the vouchers). One of the gifts was an Israeli Reflect Orb stress management device worth some $200.

Bank Hapoalim will once again be sponsoring over 170 sites and museums across Israel so citizens and visitors can visit them for free over Pesach 2023!  (Site list in Hebrew). Many other free events and workshops – see third link below.

The Jewish National Fund-USA (JNF-US) has created the Yerucham River Park. It flows from the Yerucham town’s lake – itself created from recycled and treated wastewater and purified rainwater. The River Park has become a popular recreational site for local residents and a magnet for birdlife.

Israel’s entry “Unicorn” by Noa Kirel was unveiled this week.  Noa remarked that she sees similarities between the Unicorn and Israel – both being very strong. (Ed – not sure of that connection!)

If you are in the UK on Sun 14th May, why not join Technion UK’s “From Israel With Love” event to celebrate Israel’s 75th birthday. Enjoy singers from Israel including the iconic Gali Atari who won the Eurovision with the song Hallelujah. Suitable for the whole family.

The Israel Animation Guild created a special stand at the Annecy Animation Festival in France to promote Israeli animation artists in the world. It included an installation inspired by Sacher Park in Jerusalem.