Max Jaben is an American-born Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

i swimmer who made headlines when he was suspended from swimming in the 2008 Summer Olympics

2008 Summer Olympics

The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...

 after failing a random drug test.

Career

Jaben swam for the University of Florida

University of Florida

The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...

 and graduated from the University of Missouri . In 2005, Jaben arrived in Israel to compete in the 2005 Maccabiah Games

2005 Maccabiah Games

The 2005 Maccabiah Games were the 17th incarnation of the 'Jewish Olympics.' They attracted the largest attendance of any Maccabiah Games to date, including more than 900 representatives from the United States, almost 500 from Australia, and more than 2,000 from Israel, bringing the total...

. He decided two years after the games to make aliyah

Aliyah

Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...

 and join the Israeli national swimming team. Jaben fulfilled his dreams of qualifying for the Summer Olympics in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

 by finishing in 11th place at the 2008 European Aquatics Championships in the 200 metre freestyle event with a time of 1:49.48, then an Israeli national record. During a random drug test taken after a month-long Olympic training camp in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, the anabolic steroid, boldenone

Boldenone

Boldenone , also known under the trade names Equipoise, Ganabol, Equigan and Ultragan, is an anabolic steroid developed for veterinary use, mostly for treatment of horses...

, was found in his urine samples. Though Jaben claims to have not knowingly taken the substance, he was subsequently released from the Olympic squad. After, Jaben returned to the University of Missouri to finish his Bachelors Degree in Business, Sociology and Hotel and Restaurant Management. Currently Jaben is training with Coach Dave Salo and the Trojan Swim Club, in Los Angeles California, in pursuit of his Olympic Dream.

Childhood

Max Jaben is the son of Michael and Carrie Jaben and brother to Miles Jaben. Max was named after his late Great-Grandfather, Max Jaben, a long-time Kansas City underworld and behind-the-scenes political figure. Max lived his entire childhood in Overland Park, Kansas and graduated from Blue Valley High School in 2004. During his childhood Jaben swam from coach Peter D. Malone and the Kansas City Blazers, where he still holds numerous age-group records. During his highschool years Jaben was a class president, school mascot, Homecoming King, and member of the James Gerald Band, along with Patrick Frickleton, Sam Frickleton, and Salar Rajabnik, that wrote the hit song "Stilwell."

Footnotes