LOS ANGELES (JTA) — A 19th century bare-knuckles pugilist and a pioneer women’s judo champion are among seven elected to the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
Five Americans, one Briton and one Russian will be formally inducted into the Hall of Fame museum on the campus of Israel’s Wingate Institute in July 2013 during the quadrennial Maccabiah Games.
The new inductees are:
Samuel Elias, aka “Dutch Sam,” “The Terrible Jew” and “Star of the East,” is regarded as the greatest small man in bare-knuckles ring history. He fought in 100 bouts, many lasting 35 to 60 rounds, and lost only once.
Robert “Bobby” Frankel scored 3,654 victories as a legendary horse trainer until his death a year ago in Los Angeles. His nearly $228 million in career earnings made him the second winningest trainer in horse racing history.
Judo pioneer Rena Kanokogi, the former Rusty Glickman of Brooklyn, known as the “mother of women’s judo,” almost single-handedly forced the Olympic Committee to recognize women’s judo. She coached the U.S. team in the 1988 Olympic Games.
Sports columnist Leonard Koppett wrote for New York’s Herald Tribune, Post and Times, besides authoring 16 books.
Alfred Kuchevsky played a major role as defenseman in the Soviet Union’s domination of international ice hockey in the 1950s. He was named three times to the Soviet Hockey League All-Stars.
Fred Lewis, a three- and four-wall handball champion, was named the 1970s Player of the Decade by the National Handball Association. He now lives in Arizona.
Billiards champ Michael Sigel, described as the “greatest living player of the 20th century” by the International Pool Tour, is the winner of 10 world titles and six U.S. Opens. He now lives in Florida.
Since its founding in 1979, the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame has inducted 350 sports figures from 24 countries.
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