It’s been almost a week since the closing ceremonies of the Maccabiah, the international olympiad held in Israel for athletes of the Jewish faith. But don’t fret; if we can cover the CFL here, we can certainly do a half-assed recap of the Jewish Olympics:

The Maccabiah Games, which began in 1932, are intended not only to encourage athletic excellence, but also to foster a sense of Jewish belonging and pride among the participants.

So alongside running hurdles, swimming relays and cycling in the Negev, the 8,000 athletes who gathered in Israel for the 18th Games from nearly 60 countries also toured the country and visited historically meaningful sites such as the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial and Masada. They even took part in mass bar and bat mitzvah ceremonies— some have never had one, others simply wanted to join along. via.

Perhaps the most notable athlete at the Maccabiah was Jason Lezak, the 4-time Olympic Gold Medalist swimmer who missed the World Championships in Rome to make the trip to Israel. He participated in the swimming and was then nagged by a cadre of Jewish mothers to find out when he was going to get married.

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Gaelic football and Australian Rules are similar sports, both falling within the realm between rugby and American football.  But they’re still different enough that a hybrid, International Rules, was developed to let the Australians and Irish compete against each other.

The International Rules Series kicks off tomorrow for the first time since 2006 (it’s supposed to be an annual event), and given that drinking and fighting are the only things the Irish and Australians are good at, you can guess how this series goes.  The reason it wasn’t played last year: a series of on-field brawls and assorted violence put the event’s future in doubt. Not sure why that’s seen as bad. I’d pay good money to watch Irish and Australians fight. “Fight! Fight, you curs! Winner gets a mug of ale!”

(You can watch the goodness in the video above, but I strongly recommend muting your computer, as it’s unfortunately set to Limp Bizkit or some similar insult to your ears and intelligence.)

[Dave's Football Blog]

My exposure to British culture begins and ends with Wallace and Gromit, so I'm aware of the British obsession with cheese and putting on the wrong trousers. The Cooper's Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake feeds into that. Each year, a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese is rolled down a steep hill, and competitors race after it. The first person over the finish line at the bottom of the hill wins the cheese. This year, the event was curdled (it's the cheese that goes…pun!) by 19 people who somehow got hurt hurdling down a steep hill uncontrollably.

As the rain poured down it became impossible for racers to stay on their feet and contestants became caked in mud as they flipped, somersaulted and tumbled their way down the hill.

Christopher Anderson, 19, who won the first race, was carried away from the hill on a spinal board after hurting his back as he finished head over heels.

isn't the phrase "arse over tit"? Don't shed your droll anglicisms now, Brits. And no need to worry much for these doughty blighters. All cheese enthusiasts know a thick coating of mud spruces up any cheese, and certainly improves the smell.

[Fanhouse]

There's not really a whole lot I can say about the gruesome Jorge Garbajosa injury that isn't already captured in Al Jefferson's reaction.

TrueHoop points out that Garbajosa has confirmed his season is over. Not like we really needed Jorge's opinion on that one. Even Barbaro's like, "Yo, that leg injury was NASTY."