We know Jewish athletes are out there, on rinks and in arenas, breaking the stereotype of Jews as the People of the Book. But we don't hear as often about the people working to break other Jewish stereotypes: namely, that said Jewish athletes are not just fit, but sexy. It's a unique mission adopted by Stacey Agdern, a romance novelist who specializes in the hyper-specific niche of "romance novels that prominently feature Jewish hockey players". Her new book, B'Nai Mitzvah Mistake, tells just such a story. Agdern joins to talk about Jewish athletes, the importance of representation and what's ..read more

Jonah Fialkow's name isn't very well known—but his social handle, @JewishJonah, definitely is. With nearly 20,000 followers on TikTok, Fialkow has risen the ranks of the most recognizable food vendors in North American sports stadiums. His "Day in the Life of a Wrigley Field Vendor" videos, in which he narrates a prosaic itinerary to lo-fi piano jazz, are soothing and insightful, especially for fans of the backroom economics and private lives of the men and women who pace around baseball stadiums shouting about beer and peanuts. Fialkow joins for an in-depth interview about how he got started ..read more

You don't often see athletes converting to Judaism. When they do, they aren't often All Stars. And when they are—well, we get excited. This week, the Menschwarmers firmly hop aboard the Sacramento Kings bandwagon. Not because they've won their first playoff game in 17 years, nor because their coach and star point guard won big NBA awards. It's because Domantas Sabonis, their 26-year-old All-Star centre, is converting to Judaism to share the faith of his wife, Shashana Sabonis. We dig into what this means for Jewish sports fans, the legacy of Jewish basketball players and whether Draymond Green ..read more

Craving more Jewish sports stories before Passover? We're pleased to present this recent episode of The CJN Daily about the the King David Lions, a Jewish high school basketball team in B.C. that recently won their first-ever provincial championship, defeating the reigning champs, Christian Unity. Hear more Canadian Jewish stories at thecjn.ca/daily. Credits Menschwarmers is hosted by James Hirsh and Gabe Pulver, and produced and edited by Michael Fraiman. Our intro music is by Coby Lipovitch, and our outro music is "Organ Grinder Swing" by chēēZ π. This show is a member of The CJN Podcast Net ..read more

In 1988, Paul Shindman founded an unlikely organization in the Middle East: the Israel Ice Hockey and Figure Skating Association. The Canadian expat became the country's first "hockey madrich", overseeing the development, recruitment and growth of the sport in Israel. Shindman joins the Menschwarmers to tell his story, describe how quickly Israeli kids laced up on the ice, and showcase how far the country has evolved—to the point that their youth teams are now winning competitions on the world stage. Plus, Gabe and James recap Israel's promising fall at the World Baseball Classic and the disap ..read more

Read transcript Spencer Horwitz hasn't suited up for the Toronto Blue Jays yet. Actually, he hasn't even been to Toronto yet. But the 25-year-old first baseman and outfielder is already making waves on an international stage: just days ago, as a rookie member of Team Israel's roster at the World Baseball Classic, where the Holy Land is the unanimous underdog in a group of Latin American powerhouse teams, Horwitz tied the game in the eighth inning by hitting Israel's first RBI. That completely swung the game's momentum, leading to two more runs by Team Israel—and a upset victory for the Jews. D ..read more

Next week, Israel is heading back to the World Baseball Classic, five years after their meteoric rise in the 2017 competition created a lasting impact that changed the way international fans saw Jewish athletes. Israeli baseball is now a thing, with the small country fielding a competitive team in the Olympics and beyond. So in anticipation of the WBC, the Menschwarmers couldn't help but put together a special hour-long episode dedicated to full-blown analysis—including a surprise guest appearance by MLB vet and World Series champ Ryan Lavarnway, a stalwart of the team who fills us in on where ..read more

For perhaps the first time in history, two Jewish golfers recently won big competitions in a single week: Canadian Ben Silverman won on the Korn Ferry Tour and rising star Max Homa earned his sixth victory on the PGA Tour. To commemorate the Jewish success stories, we invited Dan Rapaport, a golf reporter and podcaster with Barstool Sports, to hang out and chat about how the status of Jews in golf has changed over the decades. Plus, Gabe and James find the Jewish connections in this year’s Super Bowl, gush about Zach Hyman’s very good year, and answer the unfortunate Kyrie Irving question: Did ..read more

As we wrap up this year (and the third season of Menschwarmers), we're taking a look back at some of the most impactful stories, biggest successes and most unfortunate fizzle-outs that Jewish athletes went through in 2022. While Israel didn't perform particularly well at the Winter Olympics and the few Jews in the NFL are flailing, we've had lots of victories to celebrate—including Alex Bregman's second World Series win, Max Homa's stellar year and Taylor Fritz becoming a top-10 tennis player. Plus, there are babies! Thanks for listening this year—we'll see you all in 2023. Credits Menschwarme ..read more

Sheldon Plener didn't set out to become a sports lawyer. But that's where his legal journey took him: first, by helping to negotiate the expansion of an NBA team into Toronto in the mid-1990s; then as a key figure in the Ottawa Senators organization, where he's currently the chairman and governor, after former owner Eugene Melnyk died this past spring. Plener now finds himself heading up the sale of the NHL team—an issue he unfortunately was not at liberty to discuss on this podcast. But Plener still has plenty of stories to share, from his behind-the-scenes access to the birth of the Toronto ..read more