Lapping the Competition: Team Philly Takes Three Golds in Maccabi Swimming Finale

An early morning lightening storm pushed back the start of the  swimming finale by 30 minutes before a localized power outage bumped it back another 30.

After the twice-delayed start, Eli Avart and Oliver Goodman swam like guys who were late. The rest of the host team followed suit.

Led by Goodman and Avart, who won gold in the boys 15-16 500-yard freestyle and the boys 13-14 50-yard butterfly, the Team Philadelphia took three individual gold medals in the final leg of Maccabi swimming action Thursday at .

"Everyone is fast on this team," said Team Philly volunteer turned assistant Jenn Jovinelly, who reserved special praise for Goodman and Avart. "They're both really self motivated and their own worst critics," said Jovinelly. "They don't like to lose."

Neither have done much of it in these games. Avart, 14 and still a few weeks shy of his freshman year at Radnor High School, topped the seven swimmer field in the 50-yard butterfly with a time of 27:25—over two seconds ahead of his closest competitor. It was one of a gym bag full of highlights for the future Red Raider.

"It's fun, but it's not really about just the competition here," said Avart as he waited out the delay and counted the Maccabi swimming medals stashed in the side pocket of his bag. "I guess I've won seven so far," he shrugged.

A couple hours later, he would make it eight.

Avart's Philly teammate, Friend's Central junior Oliver Goodman, 16, also added to his gaudy medal total on Thursday, taking the 500 freestyle in 5:38.57. In addition to his 500 free heroics, the second-year Maccabi competitor—Goodman participated in last year's Baltimore games as well—took bronze in the 200-yard butterfly, 100- yard freestyle, 200-yard freestyle, and 100-yard butterfly, and claimed silver in the 400-yard IM and 50-yard freestyle.

"The Maccabi games have been a really good experience for me," said the third-year swimmer, who credited the Friend's Central community for his successes.

"It's really the environment they create—the support and the spirit—that's allowed me to do well," said Goodman.

Hannah Anderson took Team Philadelphia's third gold, winning the girls 13-14 50-yard backstroke with a time of 30:65. Anderson touched her end three seconds before the silver finisher, Mexico's Gabriella Achan.