ODED KATASH At just 36 years old, Oded Katash has completed his transformation from a playing legend to a coaching great.His short stint at Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2007 would have derailed the careers of many coaches, but not Katash.He returned to Hapoel Gilboa/Galil later that season to save it from relegation, and in May of this year, he exacted the ultimate revenge against his former – and quite likely – future employees.His Gilboa team was the clear underdog to Pini Gershon’s Maccabi entering the Final Four title game, but Katash’s men outplayed the yellow-and-blue on the way to a comfortable victory and a second championship in club history.After accomplishing all he could at Gilboa, Katash moved on to Hapoel Jerusalem in the past summer, and despite an erratic start to the 2010/11 campaign, few people would bet against him guiding his new team to success in the coming year.GAL NEVO The 23-year-old swimmer is nominated for a second straight year, a testimony to his consistency and improvement.After going a decade without a medal at the European Swimming Championships, Gal Nevo gave Israel its second medal in the event in four days in August, finishing third in the 200-meter individual medley final in the last day of competition in Budapest.Nevo, who won a bronze at the European Short Course Swimming Championships last December, also finished fourth in the 200m IM in Budapest and reached the final of the 400m IM at the short course worlds in Dubai just yesterday.In his senior year at Georgia Tech, Nevo was also named the ACC Swimmer of the Year for the second consecutive season, while finishing as the National Runner-Up in the 400IM for the second year in a row, earning All- American status.SHAHAR PE’ER After two years of ups and downs, 2010 saw Shahar Pe’er reclaim her place among the top female tennis players in the world.The 23-year-old rocketed to number 15 in the world in 2007 while reaching two Grand Slam quarterfinals. But her rise this year to a current career-best of No. 13 was especially impressive as it came on the back of a crisis many players would have failed to overcome.Pe’er dropped to No. 68 in the world in 2009, but recorded a career-best 47 wins and 21 losses this year. Pe’er entered the season with a 10-match losing streak against the top-10, but five of her 47 victories came against top-10 opponents, including a win against current No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki.Pe’er may have ended 2010 without a title, but she reached one final and six semifinals, including in the premier events in Dubai, Madrid and Beijing.For the first time since 2007 she made the last 16 of two Grand Slam tournaments, advancing to the fourth round at Roland Garros and the US Open, while also amassing a career-best $1,122,052 this year.A place in the top-10 is now within touching distance and once more there seems to be little that can stop the irresistible force that is Pe’er.ARIE SELINGER Not many people can take credit for singlehandedly resurrecting a sport, whether in Israel or elsewhere.Arie Selinger can.Women’s volleyball in Israel was in tatters until three years ago when the 73- year-old volleyball coach, who guided the US women’s team to a silver medal in the 1984 Olympics and the Dutch men’s side to a silver medal at the 1992 Barcelona Games, was brought in to guide the blue-and-white and lead it back to the top.Selinger instituted a rigorous training regimen of six days a week after selecting his 22 players, and after a couple of years of steady progress, the squad recorded its first major achievement in September, qualifying for the upcoming European Championships for the first time in 39 years.A concentration camp survivor, Selinger arrived in Israel in the American Red Cross’s first boatload of immigrants and went on to become a national team volleyball player.However, he earned his reputation in coaching and received worldwide recognition for his achievements in the US and the Netherlands, being inducted into the volleyball Hall-of-Fame in 1995.In June 2007 he finally turned his attention back to Israeli volleyball once more, and the rest is history.
The cream of the crop of a marvelous 2010
Cast your vote for this year’s ‘Post’ Israeli Sports Personality award.
ODED KATASH At just 36 years old, Oded Katash has completed his transformation from a playing legend to a coaching great.His short stint at Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2007 would have derailed the careers of many coaches, but not Katash.He returned to Hapoel Gilboa/Galil later that season to save it from relegation, and in May of this year, he exacted the ultimate revenge against his former – and quite likely – future employees.His Gilboa team was the clear underdog to Pini Gershon’s Maccabi entering the Final Four title game, but Katash’s men outplayed the yellow-and-blue on the way to a comfortable victory and a second championship in club history.After accomplishing all he could at Gilboa, Katash moved on to Hapoel Jerusalem in the past summer, and despite an erratic start to the 2010/11 campaign, few people would bet against him guiding his new team to success in the coming year.GAL NEVO The 23-year-old swimmer is nominated for a second straight year, a testimony to his consistency and improvement.After going a decade without a medal at the European Swimming Championships, Gal Nevo gave Israel its second medal in the event in four days in August, finishing third in the 200-meter individual medley final in the last day of competition in Budapest.Nevo, who won a bronze at the European Short Course Swimming Championships last December, also finished fourth in the 200m IM in Budapest and reached the final of the 400m IM at the short course worlds in Dubai just yesterday.In his senior year at Georgia Tech, Nevo was also named the ACC Swimmer of the Year for the second consecutive season, while finishing as the National Runner-Up in the 400IM for the second year in a row, earning All- American status.SHAHAR PE’ER After two years of ups and downs, 2010 saw Shahar Pe’er reclaim her place among the top female tennis players in the world.The 23-year-old rocketed to number 15 in the world in 2007 while reaching two Grand Slam quarterfinals. But her rise this year to a current career-best of No. 13 was especially impressive as it came on the back of a crisis many players would have failed to overcome.Pe’er dropped to No. 68 in the world in 2009, but recorded a career-best 47 wins and 21 losses this year. Pe’er entered the season with a 10-match losing streak against the top-10, but five of her 47 victories came against top-10 opponents, including a win against current No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki.Pe’er may have ended 2010 without a title, but she reached one final and six semifinals, including in the premier events in Dubai, Madrid and Beijing.For the first time since 2007 she made the last 16 of two Grand Slam tournaments, advancing to the fourth round at Roland Garros and the US Open, while also amassing a career-best $1,122,052 this year.A place in the top-10 is now within touching distance and once more there seems to be little that can stop the irresistible force that is Pe’er.ARIE SELINGER Not many people can take credit for singlehandedly resurrecting a sport, whether in Israel or elsewhere.Arie Selinger can.Women’s volleyball in Israel was in tatters until three years ago when the 73- year-old volleyball coach, who guided the US women’s team to a silver medal in the 1984 Olympics and the Dutch men’s side to a silver medal at the 1992 Barcelona Games, was brought in to guide the blue-and-white and lead it back to the top.Selinger instituted a rigorous training regimen of six days a week after selecting his 22 players, and after a couple of years of steady progress, the squad recorded its first major achievement in September, qualifying for the upcoming European Championships for the first time in 39 years.A concentration camp survivor, Selinger arrived in Israel in the American Red Cross’s first boatload of immigrants and went on to become a national team volleyball player.However, he earned his reputation in coaching and received worldwide recognition for his achievements in the US and the Netherlands, being inducted into the volleyball Hall-of-Fame in 1995.In June 2007 he finally turned his attention back to Israeli volleyball once more, and the rest is history.