Abstract des Autors

This essay intends to trace conceptually and historically the multifaceted nature of the Maccabiah Games from its early years. It is argued that the Games have to be seen as interdependent within the broader socio-political dimensions of what later became Israel, and in conjunction with the close relationship between the developing sport organizations and the development of the Israeli state. Moreover, it is argued that the development of sport in Israel in general, and the Maccabiah Games in particular, can only be adequately understood by presenting them in a historical context. The processes of state formation, population growth, urbanization, militarization and, most germane for the present purposes, the development of sport are not isolated but rather interdependent, and therefore all of them are of vital importance when discussing the development of the Maccabiah Games.