DRS graduates win gold medals at Maccabiah Games
Sam Swedarsky and Joe Aaron helped Team USA capture gold in baseball and basketball at the Jewish Olympics in Israel.
Two graduates of Davis Renov Stahler Yeshiva High School for Boys in Woodmere won gold medals for Team USA at the 22nd Maccabiah Games, held July 1-13 in Israel, according to the Nassau Herald. Sam Swedarsky, 17, of Woodmere, a member of the class of 2026, played for the gold-medal baseball team. Joe Aaron, 18, of Hewlett, a DRS graduate, earned gold in basketball and was named the tournament's most valuable player.
The games, often called the Jewish Olympics, bring together thousands of Jewish athletes from more than 50 countries. Swedarsky, who pitched and played third base, said the team had only two days of practice after arriving. "As the games went on, we just started getting closer and closer," he said. "I give that chemistry a lot of credit for us winning." Aaron said connecting with Jewish athletes from other backgrounds was special. "Everyone came from different backgrounds and lived differently than I did, but basketball brought us together," he said.
Swedarsky called the win a lifelong goal. "This was my dream as an 11-year-old," he said. Aaron said the friendships made during the competition were his favorite part.