1935 Maccabiah Games

The 1935 Maccabiah Games was the second Maccabiah held. These games were held despite official opposition by the British Mandatory government. A total of 28 countries were represented by 1,350 athletes. Delegations from Italy, Belgium, Holland, Turkey, France and South Africa arrived for the first time. A German delegation of 134 Jews flouted Nazi Germany's order not to attend the games and the delegation refused to fly the German flag during the opening ceremonies. The games became known as the "Aliyah Olympics" because many of the athletes from the various countries chose to remain and settle in Israel. With few exceptions, the Bulgarian delegation stayed in Israel, sending home their sports equipment and musical instruments. All 350 members of the Bulgarian delegation stayed in Palestine after the games.

In boxing, Ben Bril, Olympian and eight-time national champion, won a gold medal for the Netherlands. During the Holocaust, he was later interned at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.

In chess, Abram Blass won a gold medal for Poland, followed by David Enoch, Eduard Glass, Heinz Josef Foerder, Yosef Dobkin, Victor Winz, Moshe Czerniak, and Siegmund Beutum.

In tennis, Karol Altschuler won a gold medal for Poland, previously winning Junior Champion of Poland in 1930.

The amazing Lillian Copeland (USA), who won gold medals in the discus (37.38 meters), javelin (36.92 meters) and shot put (12.32 meters) was unquestionably the superstar of the 1935 Maccabiah.

In the final scoring, Austria placed first with 399 points, followed by Germany on 375.3 points and Eretz Israel placed third on 360.5 points.