Yosef Yekutieli (also Joseph Yekutieli; he, יוסף יקותיאלי; April 12, 1897 – September 25, 1982) was a prominent member of the international

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

sports organisation Maccabi. He was the founder of the

Maccabiah The Maccabiah Games (a.k.a. the World Maccabiah Games; he, משחקי המכביה, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics"), first held in 1932, are an international Jewish and Israeli multi-sp ...

Israel Football Association The Israel Football Association (IFA; he, ההתאחדות לכדורגל בישראל, ''HaHit'aḥdut leKaduregel beIsrael'', literally "The Association of Football in Israel") is the governing body of football in Israel. It organizes a variet ...

, and the Israel Olympic Committee. Yekutieli was the 1979

Israel Prize The Israel Prize ( he, פרס ישראל; ''pras israél'') is an award bestowed by the State of Israel, and regarded as the state's highest cultural honor. History The Israel Prize is awarded annually, on Israeli Independence Day, in a state cer ...

recipient for his special contribution to society and the state in sports.

Biography

Yosef Yekutieli was born in Kartuz-Bereza in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

(now in western

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

). In 1909, at the age of twelve, he

immigrated Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

Ottoman Palestine Ottoman Syria ( ar, سوريا العثمانية) refers to divisions of the Ottoman Empire within the region of Syria, usually defined as being east of the Mediterranean Sea, west of the Euphrates River, north of the Arabian Desert and south ...

with his family. He studied at the Tachkemoni Religious School in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

and later at the

David Yellin College of Education David Yellin College of Education is an academic teachers' college in Jerusalem, Israel established in 1913. The college is one of the first teachers' colleges in Mandatory Palestine that taught in Hebrew language, Hebrew. Known as "Seminar Bei ...

in Jerusalem. After completing his studies Yekutieli return to

Jaffa Jaffa, in Hebrew Yafo ( he, יָפוֹ, ) and in Arabic Yafa ( ar, يَافَا) and also called Japho or Joppa, the southern and oldest part of Tel Aviv-Yafo, is an ancient port city in Israel. Jaffa is known for its association with the b ...

working for the

Eretz Yisrael Office Eretz ( he, ארץ) is Hebrew for "land", "country" (with the definite article, HaAretz ( he, הארץ, "the land") In particular, it may refer to: * HaAretz HaMuvtahat, the "Promised Land" * Eretz Israel, the Land of Israel * ''Haaretz '' ...

, later playing football for the

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...

until the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In 1914 Yekutieli was drafted to the Turkish army and was appointed physical education instructor at the Mujahideen headquarters and at the public school in

Nablus Nablus ( ; ar, نابلس, Nābulus ; he, שכם, Šəḵem, ISO 259-3: ; Samaritan Hebrew: , romanized: ; el, Νεάπολις, Νeápolis) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a populati ...

. Yekutieli served as a Turkish-German interpreter at the German transport companies K.K. 502., until being exiled to

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

in 1918, along with all the other Jewish military members. At the end of the war, Yekutieli returned to

working for the Eretz Yisrael Office at the

Zionist Commission Zionist Commission for Palestine was a commission chaired by Chaim Weizmann, president of the British Zionist Federation following British promulgation of the pro-Zionist, Balfour Declaration. The Commission was formed in March 1918 and went to P ...

and

Palestine Land Development Company Israel Land Development Company (ILDC) ( he, הכשרת הישוב, Hachsharat HaYishuv) is one of Israel's largest conglomerates, with fields including real estate, construction, energy and hotels. It was acquired in 1987 by Yaakov Nimrodi. Hist ...

. For two years, he worked for the

Israel Electric Corporation Israel Electric Corporation ( he, חברת החשמל לישראל, abbreviation: IEC) is the largest supplier of electrical power in Israel and the Palestinian territories. The IEC builds, maintains, and operates power generation stations, sub- ...

acquiring land rights for high-voltage power lines from

Naharayim Naharayim ( he, נַהֲרַיִים literally "Two rivers"), historically the Jisr Majami area ( ar, جسر المجامع literally "Meeting bridge" area), where the Yarmouk River flows into the Jordan River, was named by the Palestine Ele ...

to Tel Aviv. Following his return to Palestine at the end of war, Yekutieli operated and ran the "Maccabi" until his death. He was the driving force behind the foundation of sport institutions in Israel, including the Eretz Israel Football Association in 1928, the Federation for Amateur Sports in Palestine (now the

Israeli Athletic Association The Israeli Athletic Association (IAA; איגוד האתלטיקה הישראל), located at 10 Shitrit Street, Tel Aviv, Israel, is the governing body of athletics in Israel. Doron Kofman is its President, and Jack Cohen is its General Secretar ...

) in 1931 and the Olympic Committee of Eretz Israel in 1933.

Maccabiah

Dan Hadani collection (990044357650205171)

In June 1929, at the World Congress of Maccabi in

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

, Yekutieli announced his proposal to organize the first Maccabiah, the "Maccabiada" ( he, המכביאדה), in the spring of 1932, to be held in

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine ( ar, فلسطين الانتدابية '; he, פָּלֶשְׂתִּינָה (א״י) ', where "E.Y." indicates ''’Eretz Yiśrā’ēl'', the Land of Israel) was a geopolitical entity established between 1920 and 1948 ...

. The road to fulfilling the vision was long and difficult. The 1932 Maccabiah Games were opened on March 28, 1932 and were held in the

Maccabiah Stadium The Maccabiah Stadium ( he, אצטדיון המכביה ''Itztadion HaMakabiya'') was a football stadium on the Yarkon River in Tel Aviv, Israel. Maccabiah Stadium was built in 1932 for the first Maccabiah Games and was filled to capacity for t ...

, which had been built especially for the games in the northern part of Tel Aviv. Around 400 athletes from 22 nations participated in the games, which became a recurring event every four years, except during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 (or First) Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948; the Israeli Declaration of Independence had ...

. The Maccabiah Flag, a donation by Yosef and Yehudit in memory of their son Amnon, a squad commander in the

Palmach The Palmach (Hebrew: , acronym for , ''Plugot Maḥatz'', "Strike Companies") was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv (Jewish community) during the period of the British Mandate for Palestine. The Palmach ...

who was killed during the 1948 war at the foot of the

Nabi Yusha fort Metzudat Koach ( he, מצודת כ"ח) (also Nabi Yusha fort) is a Mandatory Palestine, British Mandate police fort built during the 1936–39 Arab revolt in Palestine. On the grounds of the fort are a memorial monument and a museum founded ...

, was first hoisted during the

3rd Maccabiah The 3rd Maccabiah ( he, המכביה השלישית) took place during Sukkot from September 27 to October 8, 1950, with 17 countries competing. It was the third edition of the Maccabiah Games and the first held since the independence of the State ...

Ramat Gan Stadium Ramat Gan Stadium ( he, אצטדיון רמת גן, ''Itztadion Ramat Gan'') is a football stadium in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan, Israel. It served as the national stadium of Israel until 2014. Overview Completed in 1951 and serving ...

in 1950.

Later years

After the formation of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

in 1948, Yekutieli was appointed as a senior official of the government's abandoned property committee. Yekutieli retired in 1966. In 1971, he released his first book, an autobiography. Yosef married Yehudit, the daughter of

Akiva Aryeh Weiss Akiva Arieh Weiss, also spelled Aryeh (1868-1947), was a Zionist activist, architect, and city planner in Palestine. He is best known as the primary founder of Tel Aviv. He had been the initiator of the project to create the "first Hebrew city" in ...

, the founder of

Ahuzat Bayit Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...

, and they had four sons and two daughters. Their son, Gideon Yekutieli, was a professor of Physics at the

Weizmann Institute of Science The Weizmann Institute of Science ( he, מכון ויצמן למדע ''Machon Vaitzman LeMada'') is a public research university in Rehovot, Israel, established in 1934, 14 years before the State of Israel. It differs from other Israeli unive ...

, the first Israeli

nuclear physicist Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...

Awards and recognition

In 1954, he was awarded the Israel Dov Hoz Prize and in 1979, he was awarded the

for lifetime achievement in the design of sports and physical culture, promoting Israel and the establishment of international base of Israeli sports. In 1981, he was awarded distinguished citizen of Tel Aviv.

Legacy

In June 2008, in a ceremony attended by Tel Aviv Mayor

Ron Huldai Ron Huldai ( he, רוֹן חוּלְדָּאִי; born 26 August 1944) is the current Mayor of Tel Aviv, since 1998. Before he entered his role as Tel Aviv mayor, Huldai served as a fighter pilot and a commander in the Israeli Air Force. After ...

, the Yosef Yekutieli street in North Port, near the first

was named after him. In

Modi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut Modi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut ( he, מוֹדִיעִין-מַכַּבִּים-רֵעוּת) is an Israeli city located in central Israel, about southeast of Tel Aviv and west of Jerusalem, and is connected to those two cities via Highway 443. In t ...

, a road has been named after him. The Joseph Yekutieli Maccabi Archive at Kfar Maccabiah is also named after him.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yekutieli, Yosef 1897 births 1982 deaths People from Byaroza Jews from the Russian Empire Israeli footballers Israeli educators Ottoman military personnel of World War I Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. players Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the Ottoman Empire Israel Prize for special contribution to society and the State recipients who were sportsman Maccabiah Games 19th-century Jews from the Russian Empire 20th-century Russian Jews 20th-century Israeli people 20th-century Israeli educators 20th-century Israeli Jews Association footballers not categorized by position