In the days leading up to the 2024 Paris Olympics, numerous Israeli athletes have received anonymous death threats, proclaiming a repeat of the 1972 Munich massacre. A far-left French lawmaker denounced the Israeli delegation as being "not welcome in Paris." Rather than bowing out, Israel has been assured of 24-hour security by the French interior minister.

It's a tremendous amount of extra pressure on the country's top athletes, who are already under stress to compete internationally and make their country proud. At the last Summer Olympics in Tokyo, the Holy Land's delegation came out with a record-breaking 90 athletes—and won two golds and two bronzes, their best showing ever. Can they improve this year in Paris?

To guide us through the top Olympic sports to watch, the Menschwarmers are joined by Ido Rakovsky, the sports editor at Ha'aretz covering the 2024 Summer Games. And before that, the hosts walk through some notable Diaspora Jews worth keeping eyes on as the games kick off on July 26.

Credits

Menschwarmers is hosted by James Hirsh and Gabe Pulver, and produced and edited by Michael Fraiman. Our intro music is by Coby Lipovitch, and our outro music is "Organ Grinder Swing" by chēēZ π. This show is a member of The CJN Podcast Network. Follow the Menschwarmers on Twitter @menschwarmers or TikTok @menschwarmers. Support the show by subscribing to this podcast or donating to The CJN.

It was the summer of 2016 when Sam Schachter and Josh Binstock—both Jewish beach volleyball players competing for Canada—just barely qualified for the Olympics, less than a month before the games were to start in Rio de Janeiro.

Eight years later, history is repeating itself.

Schachter (sans Binstock, instead with new partner Daniel Dearing) just recently qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics, scheduled start on July 26. Once again, he's racing to get ready to compete on the world stage with less than a month to prepare—and this time, it's a stage that's been built directly in front of the Eiffel Tower.

Schacter joins Menschwarmers to share what his journey's been like, how he handles life as a Jewish athlete in global competition, and how he's prepping for Paris.

Before that, hosts Gabe and James recap the biggest news in Jewish sports, including Israeli NBA player Deni Avdija's sudden trade to the Portland Trail Blazers and burgeoning NHL star Zach Hyman's remarkable run through the Stanley Cup Finals.

Credits

Menschwarmers is hosted by James Hirsh and Gabe Pulver, and produced and edited by Michael Fraiman. Our intro music is by Coby Lipovitch, and our outro music is "Organ Grinder Swing" by chēēZ π. This show is a member of The CJN Podcast Network. Follow the Menschwarmers on Twitter @menschwarmers or TikTok @menschwarmers. Support the show by subscribing to this podcast or donating to The CJN.

We're entering the post-Shavuot dog days of summer, which means a wind-down for most Jewish athletes. After a short break, The CJN's sports podcasters return with a late spring catch-up to talk golf, baseball and the end of the NHL and NBA seasons.

Atlanta Braves pitcher Max Fried has emerged as a genuine candidate to win the 2024 Cy Young Award; Spencer Horwitz has firmly ascended to the majors; we're expecting Zach Hyman to step up if the Edmonton Oilers want to survive in the Stanley Cup Finals; and we offer congratulations to Yam Madar, an Israeli basketball player currently playing in Turkey, whose draft rights have been retained since 2020 by the Boston Celtics—who just won the NBA Finals.

Credits

Menschwarmers is hosted by James Hirsh and Gabe Pulver, and produced and edited by Michael Fraiman. Our intro music is by Coby Lipovitch, and our outro music is "Organ Grinder Swing" by chēēZ π. This show is a member of The CJN Podcast Network. Follow the Menschwarmers on Twitter @menschwarmers or TikTok @menschwarmers. Support the show by subscribing to this podcast or donating to The CJN.