Chad Goldberg, a hockey player at Tufts University, went to Israel in 2013 to Maccabiah Games, known as the “Jewish Olympics”. The event, held the year after the Summer Olympics, brings together the best Jewish athletes from around the world.
His twin sister, Chelsea Goldberg, a hockey player at Northeastern, wanted to play in Israel as well. Her request to play on the US men's team alongside her brother was denied. There was no other way for her because women's hockey was not part of the competition.
He decided to do something about it.
Nine years later, Goldberg is in Israel for the upcoming 21st Maccabiah as a player on the inaugural USA women's ice hockey team—a team she helped build.
“It lit a fire in me for this to happen on the women's side,” says Goldberg, a 5-foot-5 forward who has played professionally since her career at Northeastern ended in 2015. “I didn't know how long had I would take I didn't know what it would entail. But I was determined to bring women's hockey to Israel.”
Goldberg began her mission by contacting Devra Schorr, co-president of ice hockey Maccabi USA, which is committed to building Jewish pride through sports. Schorr had helped restore men's ice hockey as an event at the Maccabiah Games in 2013. She began looking for potential sponsors and players while building support from the World Association of Maccabi, who oversees the Maccabean Games. The 2017 event brought 10,000 Jewish athletes from 80 countries to Israel, making it worldwide third largest sporting event (after the Summer Olympics and Pan American Games).
“Chelsea kept saying, 'Why can't I play?' We've had these conversations many times,” says Schorr, whose daughter played ice hockey at Boston University. “I told her, 'I'm working on it, and as soon as I get the green light, you'll be the first to call.' And she was the first one I called.”
The team USA 22 players and two coaches met for the first time on July 4th weekend in Philadelphia. After practicing four times in two days, they flew to Israel with plans to practice next week while touring the country's historic sites as part of the Israel Connect program sponsored by Maccabi USA.
“When you become a Maccabi USA athlete, you're not just there for the sport,” says Schorr. “You're there for the whole experience.”
They will compete in one three-team tournament against Canada and Israel in the Maccabiah Games, which will be held July 12-26.
“It's going to be a great experience,” says USA head coach Justin Levin, a longtime men's coach for Drexel University and other programs in the Philadelphia area. “It's bigger than the stuff on the ice. We're going out there to compete and don't get me wrong, when we're on that ice, we're looking to be successful. But we understand it's a big deal and there are bigger things involved.”
Goldberg, who overcame two broken legs during her junior year, helped win two Beanpots as a Husky and earned a spot on the 2012-13 Hockey East All-Academic Team. She spent three of her Northeastern seasons alongside Kendall Coyne Schofield, who won the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award as the top player in women's college hockey in 2016.
Goldberg's career was limited by decline of professional women's hockey in North America. He has competed in showcase events organized by the Association of Professional Women's Hockey Players while working full-time in commercial and real estate management in her hometown of Los Angeles. She is a double Husky with an undergraduate degree in human services and a master's degree in sports leadership.
“I just trained myself,” says Goldberg, who was inducted into the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2020. “I've made it work.”
Her first trip to Israel is a highlight for Goldberg athletically, religiously and culturally. “I've never been to Israel,” he says. “I've always wanted to participate in mine Birthright trip, but because I was so involved in elite level hockey, I never had that much time. I was lucky enough to get sponsored to go—I'm very, very grateful to my sponsors for that.”
Goldberg is fully aware that she is helping to promote the sport.
“I'm passionate about growing the game of women's hockey,” she says. “I'm very, very excited and proud to represent Team USA in the first games.”
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