Israeli Student-Athletes Appreciate the ‘Bridge’

On Sunday, April 19, at The Dupree, The Israel Bridge sponsored Israeli student-athletes who have been standing strong, fighting antisemitism on campus, all universally serving as ambassadors for their religion and nationality.

The Israel Bridge supports Israeli student-athletes in the United States academically, emotionally, and socially. It has impacted 460 Israeli student-athletes at 220 domestic universities.

The organization was started by Atlantan Keri Greenwald’s family. She explained how her brother, Ross, a former tennis player at the University of Florida, and her father saw the need 20 years ago and began helping Israeli athletes secure scholarships and used their powerful network for things like finding kosher food and attending Passover seders with host families.

Greenwald conducted an informative chat with the athletes who fielded her questions. The audience was enthralled with the depth of passion and dedication that these athletes had as true standard bearers on campus (some very remote with little-to-no Jewish population) experiencing a wide range of interactions while also studying and practicing their sport. The sports range from swimming to volleyball, cross country, soccer, and tennis.

One thread was the mixed cultural backgrounds of these sabras, whose parents hailed from lands like Morocco, Ukraine, and Poland to thrive in Israel’s melting pot.

Panel members included:
• Anastasia Gorbenko, University of Louisville, Kent., Olympic medalist swimmer who spoke about standing strong in the face of antisemitism, even while being booed on the winner’s podium. Also, while training in Doha, Qatar, she was not able to leave the hotel and had a tight security detail. She related, “Children were screaming at me ‘Free Palestine.’ I wouldn’t let them take away my moment (of winning). She will continue training for the next Summer Olympics.
• Guy Toib, transfer to Brandeis University, Mass., swimmer, who shared about the antisemitism he faced as an Israeli student-athlete on another campus where his coach labeled him a “baby killer” and his teammates refused to engage with him. He reported this to the university president and was punished and benched by the coach. An IDF veteran, one hour after the Oct. 7 attacks, he grabbed his gun and went to fight. He wanted to honor his grandfather who had been an IDF paratrooper. Also, his brother was a top surgeon on the battlefield where his brother lost his best friend.
• Riva Hodenshvilli, University of Charleston, W.V., tennis player who lost her father in a terror attack and found a “home away from home” with her local host family. She shared that she kept kosher and couldn’t get sufficient protein until her host family stepped up to help. Also, she said, “My host mother was so remarkable. She showed up for me at events.”
Interestingly, the University of Charleston has a Jewish president, and since there is only one other Israeli athlete, Erel Barda, a volleyball player, there, they rely on each other for camaraderie. Barda spoke about organizing a Passover gathering on campus.

• Eli Cohen, Grand Canyon University, Ariz., swimmer who led pro-Israel efforts and a campus march following Oct. 7.
• Kristian Pitshugin, University of Georgia, swimmer who spoke about being far from home during wartime, including his younger nonverbal autistic brother. He said, “I was guilty being away from my mother raising my brother alone since they cancelled his school post-Oct. 7. She was with him indoors for 40 days trying to prevent him from hearing piercing sirens. I eventually went home to help.”
• Alon Biger, Maryville College, Tenn., soccer player who shared what it means to be the only Israeli and Jewish student on campus and the responsibility of representing Israel.

Hats off to these brave students and The Israel Bridge for making these important representatives’ lives easier.