Gersh (Grigory) Gershkovich, Maccabi Tel Aviv’s scout for young track and field talent, has already seen many stars rise at the Hadar Yosef Stadium in Tel Aviv. Without making comparisons, the qualities he spotted in Joshua Jayden Harel were rare. “JJ,” as he is known, is a complete package of athletic talent.
His strongest event is the high jump. But he is also strong with the javelin, as well as the decathlon, which defines the complete athlete. Truly, everything. The experienced Gershkovich assesses him this way: “He’s a coordinated, light-footed athlete, the kind who looks as if he does everything effortlessly. I don’t know what will happen down the road, but he has everything at a high level.”
Harel was born in Australia, and lived in Israel for a year and a half as a young child, creating a personal and emotional connection to the country. He moved to the United States with his family at age 5 but always made a point of visiting his grandparents in Herzliya and Rehovot.
With his three citizenships - Israeli, American and Australian - and as the Maccabiah youth champion just four years ago, it was unclear for which country he would jump in the future.
Recently, the question was settled: Ahead of the World Athletics U20 Championships, Harel, who turns 18 next month, chose the Israeli passport.
It’s possible to dream big
At just 13, Harel showed that he was a rare talent when he cleared 1.96 meters in the high jump in a prestigious competition bringing together the most talented young athletes from across the United States. It remains the competition record for athletes under 14.
At just 13, Joshua Harel showed that he was a rare talent when he cleared 1.96 meters in the high jump in a prestigious competition
(Photo:: Smotherman Images)
At the latest World U20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon, Harel finished eighth with a jump of 2.17 meters. But given his intense hunger for success, he regarded the result as a disappointment. He felt that had he not been injured during the competition, he would have had a chance to win a medal for himself and for Israel. It was a matter of fulfilling the potential he believes he has: His personal best is 2.20 meters, while the three medalists cleared 2.21, a mark Harel believed he was capable of matching.
Asked about Harel, Gershkovich, who has known him since his first steps in Israeli athletics, said: “The truth is, even though it’s not realistic, my dream is that one day as an adult he’ll clear 2.40 meters. At least we have the chance to dream big. His potential is that great.”
Although Harel has focused on track and field only in recent years — in the United States, athletes can switch between sports while still competing — by age 18 he was already among the world’s top eight under-20 high jumpers. That comes as no surprise to anyone who saw him routinely dunk while playing for his high school basketball team.
Perhaps even more than the achievement itself, Gershkovich is enthusiastic about the young athlete’s character and personality.
He was named the outstanding Jewish athlete of the year in Southern California
(Photo: Smotherman Images)
“Not only is he exceptional at everything, even outside athletics, he’s an amazing person. I can’t forget scenes with him at Hadar Yosef Stadium when he was still in middle school: After practice, he would sit down at the announcer’s booth, pull out all his schoolwork and immerse himself in it. It was the first time I had ever seen an athlete regularly doing math at the stadium.”
The reason for that commitment: At the time, JJ had emerged as a mathematical prodigy and devoted his free time to studying with the help of his grandfather, who holds a doctorate in physics and mathematics, in order to skip three school years at once. A different kind of bar — one he cleared, of course.
With all due respect to doing homework at the stadium, the more remarkable story is JJ’s connection with one of the greatest high jumpers of all time, Dwight Stones. The American icon, who won two Olympic bronze medals, in Munich in 1972 and Montreal in 1976, was the first person in history to clear 2.30 meters and set three world records between 1973 and 1976.
So how did the young athlete, who was named the Los Angeles Daily News Athlete of the Year, connect with the legendary jumper? Stones, who converted to Judaism in 1995, attends Shir Ha-Ma’alot synagogue in Los Angeles and one evening was approached by the local cantor, Aryeh Shikler.
The jumper’s father, Oren Harel, an Israeli who works in property management in California, explained: “Aryeh, who knew my father many years ago from their service in the IDF, recommended to Coach Stones that he take the boy under his wing.”
Joshua Harel is unafraid to openly display his Israeli and Jewish identity
(Photo: Smotherman Images)
And so, thanks to the synagogue cantor, Joshua became the pupil of one of the greatest jumpers in history.
Speaking from his home in Irvine, California, the 73-year-old Stones was full of praise. “I connected with JJ immediately. He’s a tremendous talent," Stones said. "The only thing is, because of his height, 1.94 meters, he suffers a lot of injuries that disrupt his training. If he can stay healthy athletically, JJ can go a long way. You build something and after an injury you have to start all over again.”
The legendary jumper added: “If he’s healthy over the next year and trains consistently, I see him in a different range of results. Based on his ability, as early as next season, at age 19, he could be consistently around 2.26 meters. If he improves even more, 2.30 is also possible for him, and that could put him on the springboard toward the top.”
Rockets? Israel is the most fun country in the world
Harel, a Los Angeles resident who describes himself as “not a politician,” is nevertheless unafraid to openly display his Israeli and Jewish identity, thanks to the upbringing he received from his parents, Oren and Lucy. He was even named the outstanding Jewish athlete of the year in Southern California and received recognition from another Jewish organization.
He wears a large Star of David on his chest, something many Jews are afraid to do today, and from time to time puts on tefillin.
“Every year I wait for the summer so I can travel to Grandpa Moshe and Grandma Rina. Connecting with new friends in Israel isn’t especially difficult either. The weather is excellent. What else? Israel is the most fun country in the world. Even the rockets while I was visiting didn’t change my mind.” he said.
With quotes like that, it was clear he would choose to represent Israel.
Harel explains: “A month ago came the decisive moment. We were sitting in Jerusalem during the Israeli Athletics Championships, where I finished second behind former world U20 champion Yonatan Kapitolnik, and that night, immediately after the final, we made the final decision that I would become an Israeli athlete. I feel connected to the Jewish people, and I want to bring joy to the country, especially in an event where there aren’t many Israelis. We told Jacques Cohen, the federation’s international relations official. Then Jacques said, ‘Get into my room quickly, the World Championships are about to begin and we need to arrange your participation fast.’”
Joshua Harel
(Photo: Smotherman Images)
That was where the decision was made, at the stadium in Jerusalem. A Sydney-born athlete living in Los Angeles chose to link himself with the Israeli Olympic establishment at one of the country’s most difficult times, when the way he is treated could change the moment “Israel” appears across his chest.
“I think I made the right choice, and I want to keep bringing achievements to Israel consistently," Harel said. "We informed Coach Stones of the decision, and he was happy about it, both as a Jew and as a coach.”
On training with Stones, the young athlete said: “It’s not that I train with him physically every day, because we live an hour and a half apart. That only happens every few weeks. We send him video from competitions, he analyzes it, gives comments and I work on the corrections. It’s the best and most effective advice. He also analyzed my performance at the World Championships in Oregon. We really wanted him to come there, but because of the distance it’s hard for him to get to every competition.”
Harel already has committed to the University of Southern California, an institution with a distinguished tradition of developing athletes, for four years of study. He chose business administration and will begin competing for the school next year.
“One of my goals for the coming season is to reach the NCAA Championships final, which I’ll be competing in for the first time. I hope to win a medal,” he said.
He is also dreaming of closing in on Niki Palli’s Israeli under-20 record of 2.30 meters and achieving success at the European U20 Championships in Poland in July 2027. Between Harel and Kapitolnik, who finished fifth at the most recent European senior championships, it is hard not to be excited about the future of Israeli high jumping.