Israel's Women's Goalball Team Reaches World Championship Final and Seals Los Angeles 2028 Berth

Israel's women’s goalball team made history on Sunday by beating the United States 7-5 in a dramatic semifinal that went to overtime and penalties, advancing to the World Championship final and securing a place at the Los Angeles 2028 Paralympic Games. It is the first Paralympic qualification for the Israeli delegation for the Games scheduled to open in August 2028.

Israel finished first in its group, then defeated Canada in the quarterfinals before meeting the Americans in the semifinal. The team will play China in the world championship final on Monday at midday.

Paralympic Committee chairman Moshe, known as Mutz, Matalon said: “The first ticket to the Los Angeles Games is a great honor and an exciting achievement for all of us. The girls reached the final, and we pray that tomorrow they will be crowned world champions. We are proud of the goalball team and committed to doing everything we can to bring our athletes to the podium. Many thanks to the players, the professional staff and all the support team. Am Yisrael Chai.”

The squad, which won silver at Paris 2024, has recently added new players. Alongside captain Lihie Ben David, experienced players Elham Mahmid Rozin and Roni Ohayon will be joined by Hadas Artzi, Shira Atiya and Selsabil Suad. The team is coached by Raz Shoham, with assistants Ariel Puerta and Wissal Shophania. Goalball is a sport for athletes with visual impairments and blindness, played with eye shades so all competitors are equal, using court markings to locate the goal and bells inside the ball to track it.