Prominent Jewish Athletes

SI Staff | Dec 21, 2011

Prominent Jewish Athletes /

Prominent Jewish Athletes

Sandy Koufax

Koufax signed with the Dodgers in 1954 and pitched 12 seasons in the major leagues. His performance from 1962 to 1966 is arguably the most dominant stretch of any pitcher in baseball history as Koufax went 111-34 with a 1.95 ERA with 100 complete games.

Kevin Youkilis

With his penchant for getting on base, Youkilis was dubbed "Greek God of walks" in the book Moneyball . The former Red Sox star made two trips to the All-Star Game and has won a Gold Glove award in parts of seven seasons.

Lyle Alzado

In 1991, Alzado admitted in a first person story in Sports Illustrated to abusing steroids, which he said made a huge difference in his performance. Alzado played 15 seasons for the Raiders. He died of complications from brain cancer at the age of 43.

Ryan Braun

The Hebrew Hammer was the 2007 NL Rookie of the Year and is a rock in the middle of the Brewers lineup.

Jon Scheyer

Scheyer once scored 21 points in 75 seconds of a high school basketball game before taking his deft perimeter touch to Duke, where he became an all-American for Coach K.

Amar'e Stoudemire

The Knicks veteran has famously embraced Judaism and is trying to get healthy for Derek Fisher's first season in New York.

Hank Greenberg

Greenberg is considered the first Jewish superstar in American sports. A five-time All-Star and two-time AL MVP, Greenberg was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1956.

Dolph Schayes

Schayes won the NBA championship with the Syracuse Nationals in 1955 and is a member of the NBA Hall of Fame, as well as one of the 50 greatest players of all time.

Mark Spitz

Spitz held the record for the most gold medals at a single Olympics (seven at the 1972 Munich Games) until surpassed by Michael Phelps in 2008.

Sid Luckman

A T-formation quarterback, Luckman led the Bears to four NFL championships in a seven-season span from 1940 to '46.

Omri Casspi

Casspi -- the pride of Holon, Israel -- became the first Israeli player to be selected in the first round of the NBA draft when the Sacramento Kings took him with the 23rd pick in 2009.

Marty Turco

The "smartest goalie in the NHL," according to Canadian hockey personality Don Cherry. Turco is tied for the most shutouts recorded in a single playoff series (three).

Ian Kinsler

Kinsler was drafted in the 17th round in 2003 after not being recruited by any Division I schools out of high school and transferring from Arizona State after being benched in his first season with the Sun Devils. Kinsler has gone on to have a stellar major league career.

Dara Torres

Torres has defied the laws of nature throughout her career as a swimmer, qualifying for the Olympics five times, and winning a silver medal in the 50 free style at 41.

Nancy Lieberman

Lieberman won three medals in international tournaments with the U.S. national team, for which she started playing when she was just 17. In July 2008, at 50, she joined the WNBA's Detroit Shock on a seven-day contract.

Kurt Angle

Angle, who won an Olympic gold medal for wrestling in 1996, has become a star in professional wrestling, where he's won titles in TNA and WWE.

Ken Holtzman

Holtzman threw two no-hitters while with the Cubs. His 174 career victories are the most ever by a Jewish pitcher.

Sarah Hughes

Hughes was inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2005. An Olympic gold medalist in 2002, she has since retired and completed her degree in American Studies from Yale University.

Steve Stone

Stone's 107 wins and 1,065 strikeouts rank him third among Jewish pitchers behind Koufax and Holtzman. His best season came in 1980, when he won the Cy Young award after going 25-7 with a 3.23 ERA.

Jason Lezak

Lezak is best known for helping Michael Phelps win one of his record eight gold medals in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Anchoring the U.S. 4x100-meter freestyle relay team, he beat France's Alain Bernard to the wall, despite having entered his leg almost a full-body length behind.

Igor Olshansky

Olshansky was born in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine and attended Oregon, where he was a standout defensive tackle. He was drafted 35th overall by the San Diego Chargers.

Mike Cammalleri

Cammalleri has scored more than 25 goals four times in his seven-year career, but his claim to fame came in the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. Despite Montreal's elimination in the conference finals, Cammalleri led all goal-scorers with 13.

Yossi Benayoun

The captain of the Israeli national soccer team, Benayoun has suited up for West Ham United and Liverpool in his club career, and on July 3 was part of a transfer deal to Chelsea. (Send comments to siwriters@simail.com)

Sue Bird

Bird is the only athlete in this gallery to star at Christ The King High in New York City. She went on to UConn, where she led the Huskies to two national championships and became the top pick in the 2000 WNBA draft. She has averaged 12.5 ppg during her NBA career, and is actually an Israeli citizen (the Russian league she plays Win during the WNBA offseason has very strict foreign player rules).

Published Dec 21, 2011

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