Petah Tikva
Hebrew transcription(s)
• Hebrew	פֶּתַח תִּקְוָה (help·info)
• Also spelled	Petah Tiqwa (official) Petach Tikvah (unofficial)
File:Peta Tikwa.jpg
Emblem of Petah Tikva
Petah Tikva
Coordinates: 32°05′19.78″N 34°53′10.8″E / 32.0888278°N 34.886333°E / 32.0888278; 34.886333Coordinates: 32°05′19.78″N 34°53′10.8″E / 32.0888278°N 34.886333°E / 32.0888278; 34.886333
District	Center
Founded	1878
Government
• Type	City (from 1937)
• Mayor	Yitzhak Ohayon
Area
• Total	35,868 dunams (35.868 km2 or 13.849 sq mi)
Population (2009)[1]
• Total	209,600
Name meaning	Opening of hope

Petah Tikva (Hebrew: פֶּתַח תִּקְוָה‎‎, IPA: [ˈpetaħ tiqˈva], "Opening of Hope") known as Em HaMoshavot ("Mother of the Moshavot"), is a city in the Center District of Israel, 10.6 km (6.59 mi) east of Tel Aviv.

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, at the end of 2009, the city's population stood at 209,600.^[1] The population density is approximately 5,800 inhabitants per square kilometre (15,000 /sq mi). Petah Tikva's jurisdiction covers 35,868 dunams (~35.9 km² or 15 sq mi).

Etymology[link]

The name of Petach Tikva was chosen by its founders in 1878 from the prophecy of Hosea (2:15), "And I will give her vineyards from thence, and the Valley of Achor for an opening of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt."

Petach Tikva's emblem appears on a postage stamp designed by Yitzhak Goldenhirsch, a founding member of Petah Tikva. The plow symbolizes Petach Tikva's origins as an agricultural settlement, the field symbolizes the drying of the Yarkon River swamps and cultivation of the land, and the orange tree symbolizes Petach Tikva's citrus industry, starting with the first tree planted by Rabbi Arye Leib Frumkin.

History[link]

Petah Tikva 1912

Petah Tikva was founded in 1878 by religious pioneers from Europe, who were led by Yehoshua Stampfer, Moshe Shmuel Raab, Yoel Moshe Salomon, Zerach Barnett^[2], and David Gutmann, as well as Lithuanian Rabbi Aryeh Leib Frumkin who built the first house there^[3]. It was the first modern Jewish agricultural settlement in Ottoman Palestine (hence its nickname as "Mother of the Moshavot") and has since grown to become one of Israel's most populous urban centres.

Originally intending to establish a new settlement in the Achor Valley, near Jericho, the pioneers purchased land in that area. However, Abdülhamid II cancelled the purchase and forbade them from settling there, but they retained the name Petah Tikva as a symbol of their aspirations.

Beit Habeton, 1920-1930

Undaunted, the settlers purchased a modest area (3.40 square kilometers) from the village of Mulabbis (variants: Mlabbes, Um-Labbes), near the source of the Yarkon River. The Sultan allowed the enterprise to proceed, but because their purchase was located in what was a malarial swamp, they had to evacuate when the malaria spread, founding the town of Yehud near the Arabic village Yehudiyya about 20 kilometres (12 mi) to the south.^{[citation needed]} With the financial help of Baron Edmond de Rothschild they were able to drain the swamps sufficiently to be able to move back in 1883, joined by immigrants of the First Aliyah, and later the Second Aliyah.

During the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I, Petah Tikva served as a refugee town for residents of Tel Aviv and Jaffa, following their exile by the Ottoman authorities due to their refusal to serve the Ottoman army to fight the invading British forces. The town suffered heavily as it lay between the Ottoman and British fronts during the war.

Petah Tikva became the school for thousands of pioneer workers, who studied the craft of farming there before they ventured out to establish dozens of settlements in all parts of the country. The agricultural schools are still active to this day. Petah Tikva was also the birthplace of the Labor Zionist Movement, inspired and encouraged by the writings of A. D. Gordon who lived in the town.

The first recorded Arab attack on Jews in what would become Israel took place in Petah Tikva in 1886.^[4] Petah Tikva was also the scene of Arab rioting in May 1921, which left four Jews dead.^[5]

In the 1930s, the pioneering founders of Kibbutz Yavneh from the Religious Zionist movement immigrated to the British Mandate of Palestine, settling near Petah Tikva on land purchased by a Jewish-owned German company. Refining the agricultural skills they learned in Germany, these pioneers began in 1941 to build their kibbutz in its intended location in the south of Israel, operating from Petah Tikva as a base.

In the early 1920s, industry began to develop in the Petah Tikva region. In 1921, Petah Tikva was given the status of a local council by the British authorities, and in 1937 it was recognized as a city. Its first mayor, Shlomo Stampfer, was the son of one of its founders, Yehoshua Stampfer.

Urban development[link]

New housing under construction in Em Hamoshavot

After the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, several adjoining villages – Amishav and Ein Ganim to the east (named after the biblical village (Joshua 15:34)), Kiryat Matalon to the west, towards Bnei Brak, Kfar Ganim and Mahaneh Yehuda to the south and Kfar Avraham on the north – were merged into the municipal boundaries of Petah Tikva, giving it a significant population boost to 22,000.

Nowadays, with a population of over two hundred thousand inhabitants Petah Tikva is the third most populous city in the Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area ("Gush Dan").

Economy[link]

Azorim High-Tech park

Petah Tikva is the second-largest industrial sector in Israel after the northern city of Haifa. The industry is divided into three zones—Kiryat Aryeh (named after Aryeh Shenkar, founder and first president of the Manufacturers Association of Israel and a pioneer in the Israeli textile industry), Kiryat Matalon (named after Moshe Yitzhak Matalon), and Segula, and includes textiles, metalwork, carpentry, plastics, processed foods, tires and other rubber products, and soap.

Numerous high-tech companies and start-ups have moved into the industrial zones of Petah Tikva, which now house the Israeli headquarters for the Oracle Corporation, IBM, Intel, Alcatel-Lucent, ECI Telecom, and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmecuticals. The largest data center in Israel, operated by the company TripleC, is also located in Petah Tikva.^[6] Furthermore, the Israeli Teva company, the world's largest generic drug manufacturer is headquartered in Petah Tikva, whilst one of Israel's leading food processing corporations, Osem opened in Petah Tikva in 1976 and has since been joined by the company's administrative offices, distribution center and sauce factory.

Over time, the extensive citrus groves that once ringed Petah Tikva have disappeared as real-estate developers acquired the land for construction projects. Many new neighborhoods are going up in and around Petah Tikva. A quarry for building stone is located east of Petah Tikva.

As well as general hi-tech firms, Petah Tikva has developed a position as a base for many communications firms. As such, the headquarters of the Bezeq International international phone company is located in the Kiryat Matalon industrial zone as are those of the 012 Smile Internet Service Provider. The headquarters of Tadiran Telecom are in the Ramat Siv industrial zone. Arutz Sheva, the right wing Religious Zionist Israeli media network operates an internet radio studio in Petah Tikva, where Arutz Sheva internet TV is located as well as the printing press for its B'Sheva newspaper.

The Israeli secret service, Shin Bet, has an interrogation facility in Petah Tikva.^[7]

Transportation[link]

Calatrava bridge

Petah Tikva is served by a large number of buses. A large number of intercity Egged buses stop there, and the city has a network of local buses operated by the Kavim company. The Dan bus company operates lines to Ramat Gan, Bnei Brak and Tel Aviv.

Petah Tikva's largest bus terminal is the Petah Tikva Central Bus Station (Tahana Merkazit), while other major stations are located near Beilinson Hospital and Beit Rivka. A rapid transit/light rail system is in the works which will connect Petah Tikva to Bnei Brak, Ramat Gan, Tel Aviv and Bat Yam.

Israel Railways maintains two suburban railroad stations in Segula and Kiryat Aryeh, in the northern part of the city. A central train station near the main bus station is envisioned as part of Israel Railways's long-term expansion plan. There are eight taxi fleets based in Petah Tikva, and the city is bordered by three of the major vehicle arteries in Israel: Geha Highway (Highway 4) on the west, the Trans-Samaria Highway (Highway 5) on the north, and the Trans-Israel Highway (Highway 6) on the east.

Santiago Calatrava's bridge, a 164 feet (50 m) long span Y-shaped cable-stayed pedestrian bridge connecting Rabin Hospital to a shopping mall, a residential development and a public park. The structure is supported from a 95-foot (29 m) high inclined steel pylon, which is situated where the three spans intersect. Light in construction, the bridge is built principally of steel with a glass-paved deck.^[8]

Local government and politics[link]

Petah Tikva City Hall

Petah Tikva's history of government goes back to 1880, when the pioneers elected a council of seven members to run the new colony. From 1880 to 1921, members of the council were David Meir Guttman, Yehoshua Stampfer, Ze'ev Wolf Branda, Abraham Ze'ev Lipkis, Yitzhak Goldenhirsch, Chaim Cohen-Rice, Moshe Gissin, Shlomo Zalman Gissin and Akiva Librecht. This governing body was declared a local council in 1921, and Petah Tikva became a city in 1937. Kadima, the political party founded by former Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon and now headed by Tzipi Livni, has its headquarters in Petah Tikva.^[9] In 2007, the discovery of a group of Neo-Nazi teenagers, Patrol 35, formed by immigrants from the former Soviet Union with some Jewish ancestry shocked the country.^[10]

Council heads[link]

• Shlomo Zalman Gissin (1921)
• Pinchas Meiri (1922–1928)^[11]
• Shlomo Stampfer (1928–1937)

Mayors[link]

Schools and religious institutions[link]

Great Synagogue, Petah Tikva

Petah Tikva is home to 300 educational institutions from kindergarten through high school, catering to the secular, religious and Haredi populations. There are over 43,000 students enrolled in these schools, which are staffed by some 2,400 teachers. In 2006, five schools participated in the nationwide Mofet program, which promotes academic excellence.^{[citation needed]} Petah Tikva has nine public libraries, the main one located in the city hall building.

Some 70,000 Orthodox Jews live in Petah Tikva. The community of Petah Tikva is served by 300 synagogues,^[12] including the 120-year old Great Synagogue,^[13] eight mikvaot (ritual baths)^[14] and two major Haredi yeshivot, Lomzhe Yeshiva and Or-Yisrael (founded by the Chazon Ish, Rabbi Avraham Yeshayahu Karelitz). Yeshivat Hesder Petah Tikva, a modern-orthodox Hesder Yeshiva affiliated with the Religious Zionist movement, directed by Rabbi Yuval Cherlow, is also located in Petah Tikva.

Petah Tikva has two cemeteries: Segula Cemetery, east of the city, and Yarkon Cemetery, to the northeast.

Neighborhoods[link]

Petah Tikva is divided into 33 neighborhoods for municipal purposes:^[15]

Health care[link]

Rabin Medical Center (Belinson)

Petah Tikva has the most extensive health coverage of any city in Israel relative to the size of its population.^{[citation needed]} Six hospitals are located in the city. The Rabin Medical Center Beilinson complex includes the Beilinson Medical Center, the Davidoff Oncologic Center, the Geha Psychiatric Hospital, the Schneider Pediatric Hospital and Tel Aviv University's Faculty of Medical Research. Other medical facilities in Petah Tikva are HaSharon Hospital, the Beit Rivka Geriatric Center, the Kupat Holim Medical Research Center and a private hospital, Ramat Marpeh, affiliated with Assuta Hospital. The Schneider Pediatric Center is one of the largest and most modern children's hospitals in the Middle East. In addition, there are many family health clinics in Petah Tikva as well as Kupat Holim clinics operated by Israel's Health maintenance organizations.

Landmarks and cultural institutions[link]

Koblenz Square

• Beit Yad Labanim
• Petah Tikva Museum of Art
• Petah Tikva Zoo
• Rothschild Arch

Arab-Israeli conflict[link]

During the Second Intifada, Petah Tikva suffered three terrorist attacks: On May 27, 2002, a suicide bomber blew himself up at a small cafe outside a shopping mall, leaving two dead, including a baby;^[16] on December 25, 2003, a suicide bomber blew himself up at a bus stop near the Geha bridge, killing 4 civilians, and on February 5, 2006, a Palestinian got into a shuttle taxi, pulled out a knife, and began stabbing passengers killing two of them, but a worker from a nearby factory hit him with a log, subduing him.

Sports[link]

Petah Tikva has two soccer teams – Hapoel Petah Tikva F.C. and Maccabi Petah Tikva F.C.. The local baseball team, the Petach Tikva Pioneers, played in the inaugural 2007 season of the Israel Baseball League. The league folded the following year.

Notable residents[link]

Tal Burstein

Pnina Rosenblum

• Yehuda Amichai (1924–2000), poet
• Hanoch Bartov (b. 1926 in Petah Tikva), author and columnist
• Tal Burstein (b. 1980 in Petah Tikva), professional basketball player
• Shmuel Dayan (1891–1968), Zionist activist
• Israel Finkelstein (b. 1949 Petah Tikva), archaeologist
• Dudu Fisher (b. 1951 in Petah Tikva), cantor and stage performer
• Yehoshua Kenaz (b. 1937 in Petah Tikva), novelist
• A. D. Gordon (1856–1922), Labor Zionist ideologue
• Tamar Gozansky (b. 1940 in Petah Tikva), politician
• Avraham Grant (b. 1955 in Petah Tikva), former coach of Israel national football team and Chelsea F.C.
• Tzofit Grant (b. 1964 in Petah Tikva), television personality and Avraham Grant's wife
• Simcha Jacobovici (b. 1953 in Petah Tikva), filmmaker
• Haim Kaufman (b. 1936 in Petah Tikva), city council member, Knesset member, deputy to finance minister, businessman
• Itzik Kol (1932–2007), television and movie producer
• Samir Naqqash (1938–2004), Iraqi-Jewish author
• Zvi Nishri (Orloff) (1878–1973), Russian/Palestinian/Israeli pioneer in physical education
• Elyakum Ostashinski (b. 1909 in Petah Tikva), first mayor of Rishon LeZion
• Leah Rabin (1928–2000), wife of assassinated Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin, lived in Petah Tikva from 1995 until her death in 2000
• Neta Rivkin (born 1991), rhythmic gymnast
• Pnina Rosenblum (b. 1954 in Petah Tikva), fashion model, businesswoman, and politician.
• Rami Saari (b. 1963 in Petah Tikva), poet, translator, linguist, and literary critic
• Dan Shechtman (b. 1941), winner of Nobel Prize for Chemistry^[17]
• Giora Spiegel (b. 1947 in Petah Tikva), soccer player and coach
• Nahum Stelmach (1936–99), soccer player and figurehead of local team, Hapoel Petah Tikva
• Idan Tal (b. 1975 in Petah Tikva), soccer player
• Orphaned Land, a metal band

International relations[link]

Twin towns — Sister cities[link]

Petah Tikva is twinned with:

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Petah Tikva

• Official website (English)
• Photos of Petah Tikva

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Tal Ben Haim
טל בן-חיים

Ben Haim at West Ham, August 2010
Personal information
Full name	Tal Ben Haim
Date of birth	(1982-03-31) 31 March 1982 (age 30)
Place of birth	Rishon LeZion, Israel
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position	Centre Back / Right Back / Defensive Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Portsmouth
Number	26
Youth career
1988–2001	Maccabi Tel Aviv
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2001–2004	Maccabi Tel Aviv	85	(2)
2004–2007	Bolton Wanderers	88	(1)
2007–2008	Chelsea	13	(0)
2008–2009	Manchester City	9	(0)
2009	→ Sunderland (loan)	5	(0)
2009–	Portsmouth	55	(0)
2010–2011	→ West Ham United (loan)	8	(0)
National team‡
2001–2002	Israel U21	6	(0)
2002–	Israel	63	(1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 31 March 2012. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 29 February 2012

Tal Ben Haim (Hebrew: טל בן-חיים‎; born 31 March 1982 in Rishon LeZion) is an Israeli professional footballer who plays for Portsmouth.

He can play at either centre back or right back and defensive midfielder. He is also a member of the Israeli national squad. He made his debut for Israel on 13 February 2002 in a friendly match against Germany.^[1]

Club career[link]

Maccabi Tel Aviv[link]

Ben-Haim joined the Maccabi Tel Aviv senior squads in 1998 as a reserve player and it stayed that way, breaking into the first team some time later. His league debut came on 30 April 2001 when he came on in the 90th minute as a substitute in the Tel Aviv derby match. He played a significant part in Maccabi's Israeli Premier League title in the 2002–03 season, and was appointed club captain the following season, replacing Gadi Brumer who retired in mid-season.

Bolton Wanderers[link]

Tal Ben-Haim at Bolton Wanderers F.C., November 2005

After a two week trial with Bolton Wanderers in the summer of 2004, Sam Allardyce secured the services of Ben-Haim on a three-year deal for a fee believed to be in the region of £150,000.^[2] Although Allardyce did not believe Ben-Haim would be ready for the rigours of the Premier League immediately, he was confident that, given time, Ben-Haim would have as big an impact on the English game as illustrious fellow countryman Eyal Berkovic.

His first season at the Reebok Stadium was a successful one as he made 27 appearances. On 1 February 2005, Ben Haim scored his first and only goal for Bolton, heading a free-kick from Stelios Giannakopoulos into the net in Bolton's 3–1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur.^[3] This is his only goal in the Premier League to date. The only thing that hampered his campaign a little was a clash with Wayne Rooney in a league match when Rooney appeared to shove him in the face. Ben-Haim, it was claimed, went down too easily and made too much of it and was charged with improper conduct by the Football Association, but was later cleared of charges.^[4]

On 20 October 2005 while playing for Bolton in the UEFA Cup away at Beşiktaş, Ben-Haim wore the captain's armband and was praised by the regular team captain Jay-Jay Okocha. In the second leg of the UEFA Cup Round of 32 against the French side Marseille which they drew 0-0 in the first leg, Ben Haim was the blame when he scored an own goal in the 69th minutes which turns out to be a winner for Marseille as the result was 2-1 on 23 February 2006.

Ben-Haim's defensive displays in his following seasons at Bolton had attracted the interests of many clubs including Chelsea, West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur. In January 2007, Chelsea confirmed that talks to sign Ben-Haim from Bolton were unsuccessful.^[5]

Following the end of the 2006–07 season, Ben-Haim's contract with Bolton had expired and his future at Bolton was in doubt with media reports linking him with a move to Chelsea and Newcastle United, ex-Bolton boss Sam Allardyce admitting that he was ready to make an offer to his former charge to bring him to Newcastle.

His transfer from Maccabi to Bolton in July 2004 is one of those about which the Stevens inquiry report in June 2007 expressed concerns because of the apparent conflict of interest between agent Craig Allardyce, his father Sam Allardyce – the then manager at Bolton – and the club itself.

Chelsea[link]

On June 2007, Chelsea officially announced the signing of Ben-Haim on a Bosman transfer after he had passed his medical at Stamford Bridge and agreed on personal terms to join the club on a four-year deal. Ben-Haim told the Jewish Telegraph exclusively: "I am very happy to join one of the greatest clubs in the world. I needed a new challenge. I will play in any position Jose Mourinho wants me to play. I am looking forward to starting the new season with Champions League football." He made his competitive début for Chelsea against Manchester United in the FA Community Shield. With injuries to fellow Chelsea defenders John Terry and Ricardo Carvalho Ben Haim remained a regular in the Chelsea first team. However, after the recovery of first team pairing Terry and Carvalho and the impressive form of Alex, Ben Haim found himself to be the fourth choice centre back.

In April 2008, he hit out at former Chelsea manager Avram Grant after Chelsea's 1–1 draw with Wigan Athletic stating: "If I knew Avram Grant was going to be the coach I would have signed for another club. It was Jose who brought me here and no one except he and I know the conversation we had when he tried to sign me the first time a year ago last January. The fact is while Jose was the coach I played most of the games and people who know me know that I would not have come here to be a reserve. I knew nothing good would come for me with Grant as Chelsea coach."^[6] In a press conference, Avram Grant responded: "I don’t think José promised Ben Haim he will play before John Terry, Carvalho and Alex, It is internal business but, in my opinion, if a player was wrong we need to deal with it — in our way, my way."^[7] Tal Ben Haim was fined two weeks wages, about £80,000.^[7]

During Ben Haim's stay at Chelsea, he made 13 Premier League appearances, before transferring to Manchester City.

Manchester City[link]

Ben Haim at Manchester City

Ben Haim joined City on 30 July 2008 for a fee around £5m, becoming only the second first-team signing of new manager Mark Hughes.^[8]

He chose to wear the number 26 jersey, vacated by the transfer of Matthew Mills because, apart from his time at Chelsea where it was worn by John Terry, he had always worn that number at club level. After signing, Ben Haim said "I’m definitely going to give my best to City and give my heart in every game. I hope that we can do good things this season. I’m looking forward to starting the season here."^[9] Ben Haim made his City debut in second leg of the UEFA Cup qualifier against EB/Streymur at Barnsley's Oakwell Stadium on 31 July where City won 2–0. Ben Haim eventually made his league debut for Manchester City which he received a booking as Manchester City lost to Aston Villa 4-2 on 17 August 2008. He failed to establish himself as a first team regular, which saw him left on the substitutes bench for a long period of the season. After returning to the club, following a loan spell at Sunderland, it was clear that he was surplus to requirements at Eastlands. He was then transfer listed.

Sunderland (loan)[link]

Ben Haim signed for Sunderland on loan until the end of the 2008–09 season on 1 February 2009. He made his debut away to Arsenal on 21 February and made his home debut at the Stadium of Light on 7 March against Tottenham Hotspur. He again found it difficult to break into the side. Ben-Haim was limited to only 5 appearances in a Sunderland shirt. At the end of the 2008–09 season, he returned to Manchester City.

Portsmouth[link]

On 31 August 2009 it was announced that Portsmouth had signed Ben-Haim on a four-year deal. On 12 September 2009, Ben Haim made his league debut for the club in a 3-2 loss against his former club Bolton. Since then he was become one of the two first choice centre-backs under managers Paul Hart and his former manager at Chelsea, Avram Grant. He suffered an injury in the second half of the season, which kept him out of Portsmouth's FA Cup final game against Chelsea, which Pompey lost 1–0. On 20 December 2009 a match between Portsmouth and Liverpool which Portsmouth won 2-0, Ben Haim accused Liverpool striker Fernando Torres elbowing him during the match.^[10] In May 2010, after Portsmouth had been relegated, Ben Haim left the club as there was a relegation-release clause in his contract but declined the chance to activate it.^[11] He played for just one season for Portsmouth and made 24 appearances for the club in all competitions.^[12] Ben Haim has criticsed the club's former owners as they prepare for life in the Championship next season and the cash issues have played a significant role in the club's demise.^[13] As the 2010/11 Championship campaign for Portsmouth set to start, the club's administrator Andrew Andronikou wants Ben Haim crippling salary off the club's wage bill and was interested to be signed by West Ham and an unnamed Greek club.^[14]

West Ham United (loan)[link]

In July 2010 Ben Haim was set to join his ex-Portsmouth manager, Avram Grant at West Ham United on a free transfer, but it was reported that the move had collapsed after Ben Haim had failed a medical and Ben Haim's rumoured wage demands of £38,000-a-week.^[15] On 2 August the Israeli press reported that Ben Haim had agreed terms with West Ham on a three-year^[16] deal after passing a medical with Ben Haim considering legal action against the reporter who had published reports about his failed medical.^[17] He joined West Ham on 3 August 2010 on loan until January 2011 with a view to a permanent deal.^[18] On 24 August 2010 Ben Haim played his first game for West Ham, against Oxford United in the League Cup, in a 1–0 victory ^[19] and made his league debut for the club in a 3-1 loss against his former club Chelsea on 11 September 2010. On 1 January 2011 assisted Freddie Sears to score in a 2-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.^[20] Four days later on 5 January 2011 he played for West Ham as they lost 5–0 to Newcastle United.^[21] This turned out his last appearance for West Ham. Despite his loan spell at West Ham having ended, the club continued talks with Portsmouth regarding a deal to bring Ben Haim back;^[22] the two clubs could not come to an agreement, while financial issues prevented him from linking up with Pompey.^[23]

Return to Portsmouth[link]

In January 2011, Ben Haim returned to Portsmouth after his loan spell expired,^[24] but he had still not been added back to the squad when the transfer window closed and did not make any appearances for Portsmouth that season returning to training with the squad.^[25] He was in dispute with Portsmouth over £1.4million in unpaid wages. Because of this, manager Steve Cotterill was unable to select Ben Haim for the final fixtures of to 2010/11 season. The case was set to go to a Football League hearing in July 2011, but with new owners (CSI) installed at the club, Portsmouth were able to reach an acceptable agreement with Ben Haim.^[26]

On 11 July, Ben Haim made his first appearance for Portsmouth since the 2009-10 season in a 4-0 pre-season win over Havant & Waterlooville.^[27] On 6 August 2011, Ben Haim made his first league appearance in a 2-2 draw against Middlesbrough. On 27 August 2011, Ben Haim provided an assist to allow Nwankwo Kanu to score to make it 1-1 against Welsh side Cardiff City and also provided another assist the following week for Greg Halford to score the third goal in the match as Portsmouth lost 4-3 to his former club, West Ham. Later on in the 2011/12 season, Portsmouth would go into administration for the second time in two years, bringing them an automatic 10-point deduction. An arrest warrant was issued for Vladimir Aleksandrovich Antonov and Portsmouth were issued a winding up petition by HMRC for over £1.6 million in unpaid taxes, which was heard on 20 February. The end of the 2011/12 season saw Portsmouth get relegated from the Championship, after which Ben Haim stated that he will not play in League One despite having one year remaining on his deal, worth around £2million. He is expected to leave Portsmouth in the summer of 2012.^[28]

Honours[link]

Statistics[link]

As of 31 March 2012

See also[link]

• List of select Jewish football (association; soccer) players

References[link]

External links[link]

• Tal Ben-Haim career stats at Soccerbase
• Ben-Haim's homepage
• Uri Geller online regarding Tal Ben-Haim

Katerina Pisetsky
Full name	Katerina Yevgenyevna Pisetsky
Nickname(s)	Katia
Country represented	Israel
Former country(ies) represented	Ukraine
Born	(1986-02-26) February 26, 1986 (age 26) Zaporozhie
Discipline	Rhythmic gymnastics

Katerina Yevgenyevna "Katia" Pisetsky (Russian: Екатерина "Катя" Евгеньевна Писецки, Ukrainian: Катя Пісецька, Hebrew: קטרינה "קטיה" איבגניה פיסצקי‎, born February 26, 1986 in Zaporozhie, Ukrainian SSR) is an Israeli rhythmic gymnast.

Biography[link]

She is Jewish,^[1] and started rhythmic gymnastics at age 6 in Zaporozhie, after her parents enrolled her. After her first coach Svetlana Zaharova moved to Germany, she insisted on Katja switching coaches to Ludmila Kovalik, who was the coach of Oxana Skaldina, a former World Champion and Olympic medalist.

Pisetsky's talent was noticed and it was decided to take her to the best coach in Southern Ukraine - Liubov Serebrianskaya, at the Simferopol club Gratsia. To do so, Pisetsky would have to go to a boarding school. Her parents, Eugenij and Tatiana, were at first opposed to sending her boarding school. However, they were convinced to try. Pisetsky's grandmother did not live far from Simferopol and she could visit her grandchild often.

The young Pisetsky was living quite independently, step-by-step learning and developing her body movements and apparatus techniques. Pisetsky shared a room with fellow rhythmic gymnast Svetlana Rudalova for 2 years. Pisetsky had a successful career while training in Simferopol. She was a medalist at the Ukrainian Junior Championships medalist, and was in medal position at international competitions.

Her first international competition was in 1998, when she went to Slovenia with Ekaterina Serebrianskaya. Pisetsky won the competition. In 2000, she competed in the Club World Championships in Tokyo, Japan and was placed 7th.

Coach Liubov Serebrianskaya was sick with cancer and could not attend the gym as often as before. Pisetsky's parents planned to move her to a different country. Her coach opposed the move, but the preparation for immigration had begun. Pisetsky had previously competed in Israel in 1999.

Pisetsky won the 2002 Israeli Cup. Her first international competition representing Israel was the Thias Grand Prix where she was ranked 24th in the All-Around. At the European Championship in Granada, she was second ranked member of the Israeli team, because she had placed second at the 2003 Israeli Cup.

Her first major competition was Israel was the 2002 European Championships. At that competition, she placed 13th in the All-Around and was the best-placing Israeli gymnast of the event. She also competed at the 2003 European Championships, where only the top 15 best European gymnasts compete.

She competed for Israel at the 2004 Summer Olympics.

He competed on behalf of Israel at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.^[2]

She currently belong to the Israel Rhythmic Gymnastic Group who places in 7th in the finals

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Katerina Pisetsky at Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique