{"id":21799,"date":"2025-05-04T21:00:07","date_gmt":"2025-05-04T18:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/?p=21799"},"modified":"2025-05-05T10:06:09","modified_gmt":"2025-05-05T07:06:09","slug":"in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/","title":{"rendered":"In the Snowy Alps, Soccer Fans Helped Heal Soldiers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yellow Warriors
\n<\/strong>Two extraordinary groups set out for the French Alps: male and female combat soldiers, all fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv and members of the legendary group who regularly occupy the “Section 11” stands in the stadium, who came together for a unique winter journey. The trip was designed to reconnect and promote emotional healing through what they called: Snow Therapy.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Maccabi Tel Aviv fan-soldiers on the journey | Photo: Snow Therapy Association<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How \u201cSnow Therapy\u201d Was Born<\/strong>
\nThe idea came from Tal Hollander, a Maccabi Tel Aviv fan who lost his brother in war. From this heartbreak, the initiative was born: to turn the love for the team into a community of recovery and support. Thus, Snow Therapy grew out of Section 11 and became a rare collaboration between fans, the Brothers to the Symbol association, Maccabi Fanatics, the Gate fan group, and the Maccabi Tel Aviv Foundation, all of whom were actively involved in planning, funding, and equipping every participant.<\/p>\n

The days were spent skiing through snowy landscapes, while the evenings were dedicated to group discussions led by psychologists and emotional counselors. For the first time, participants opened up about wounds too painful to discuss in everyday life. The snow broke down barriers, conversations became honest, and the group became a family. Both physical and emotional injuries were given names, acknowledgment, and a safe space to rest.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Participants on the journey | Photo: Brothers to the Symbol Association<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Voices From the Field: \u201cThe Snow Made Us a Family\u201d<\/strong>
\nAlmog, one of the mission leaders, shared: \u201cThe idea started in the stands, but what happened in the Alps surpassed all imagination. Maccabi fans turned out to be a unifying and embracing force.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ben Orenstein, a soldier from the 932nd Battalion, recalled his most meaningful moment: \u201cSkiing with the flag of my fallen comrade, Roi Barakat z\u201dl, who died in battle in Nahal Oz \u2014 I felt like he was there with me. With us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eyal Zano, a Golani fighter, shared a pivotal experience: \u201cI fell on one of the tough slopes. Everyone came back with me \u2014 this time, I made it. That day, I dedicated my ski run to a friend who died beside me. I felt like he was skiing with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Skiing in the Alps | Photo: Brothers to the Symbol Association<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What We Experienced There \u2013 We\u2019ll Take With Us for Life<\/strong>
\nThe participants emphasized that the partnership with Maccabi Tel Aviv wasn\u2019t just symbolic \u2014 it was part of the healing. \u201cThe presence of the fans was an anchor,\u201d said Eyal, echoing the words of Tal Hollander: \u201cWhat we experienced up on that mountain \u2014 we\u2019ll carry with us through life: the courage, the laughter, the embrace. And let\u2019s not forget the first rule in our crew \u2014 smiles are mandatory!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Some of the participants on the evening before skiing | Photo: Brothers to the Symbol Association<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A group of Israeli soldiers \u2014 all Maccabi Tel Aviv fans \u2014 embarked on a journey of connection and healing in the snowy Alps, proving that their team is more than just a club \u2014 it’s family.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":21800,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77,2276,85,4,2564,65],"tags":[5144,5145,2060],"class_list":["post-21799","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-idf","category-people","category-positive-moment","category-sports","category-travel","category-world","tag-french-alps","tag-healing-retreats","tag-maccabi-tel-aviv"],"yoast_head":"\nIn the Snowy Alps, Soccer Fans Helped Heal Soldiers - REGA news<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"In the Snowy Alps, Soccer Fans Helped Heal Soldiers\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A group of Israeli soldiers \u2014 all Maccabi Tel Aviv fans \u2014 embarked on a journey of connection and healing in the snowy Alps, proving that their team is more than just a club \u2014 it's family.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"REGA news\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-05-04T18:00:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-05T07:06:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/snow-therapy.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1365\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1457\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"By Rega News Staff\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"By Rega News Staff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"By Rega News Staff\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/3f9b86ab4cc807acf1c0839b1f1ac2ce\"},\"headline\":\"In the Snowy Alps, Soccer Fans Helped Heal Soldiers\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-04T18:00:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-05T07:06:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/\"},\"wordCount\":514,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/snow-therapy.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"French Alps\",\"Healing Retreats\",\"Maccabi Tel Aviv\"],\"articleSection\":[\"IDF\",\"PEOPLE\",\"POSITIVE\",\"SPORTS\",\"TRAVEL\",\"WORLD\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/reganews.co.il\/en\/in-the-snowy-alps-soccer-fans-helped-heal-soldiers\/\",\"name\":\"In the Snowy Alps, Soccer Fans Helped Heal Soldiers - 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