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At the Ninth Hapoel Games during the 1971 Histadrut Jubilee year some 1,000 sportsmen from 24 countries on all continents participated. Members of European workers' sports organizations contested various championships, and top sportsmen demonstrated their prowess.
During the week of the meet (April 29-May 5, 1971), some 100 events took place all over the country, in cities, development towns, kibbutzim, army bases, border settlements, and villages, both Arab and Jewish.
Four numbers were symbolic in the 1971 games: 9, 23, 45, and 50:
- 9 symbolized the continuity of Hapoel Games.
- 23 symbolized Israel’s 23rd year, in the celebration of which the meet was an important element.
- 45 stood for Hapoel's 45th anniversary year, marking the organization's steady progress.
- 50 stood for the Jubilee of the Histadrut, which Hapoel, being an important expression of Histadrut strength and achievements, and devoted to its values, joined in celebrating.
The activities of the Games were of three types: massed displays, national evenings, and sports events. There were three mass gatherings. The opening on April 29, a main item in the Independence Day celebrations, took place in the Ramat Gan Municipal Stadium, with the President attending. The closing ceremony on May 5 at Binyanei Ha-ooma in Jerusalem was attended by the Prime Minister. It was a solemn event in academic style, and among the participants were dance and folklore troupes from Israel and abroad. The May 1st event took place in Haifa in the presence of Histadrut leaders.
National evenings featured rhythmics, dancing and folklore. About 20 such events took place all over the country, some of them in army bases under the "Hapoel Salutes the Israel Defense Force" program.
There were sports events in 17 categories, the most outstanding of which were athletics, gymnastics, and ball games, and these three are the subjects of the commemorative stamp issue.
Hundreds of members of European workers' sports organizations came, the largest groups being from Italy, France, Belgium, Austria and Switzerland.
There were series of basketball, volleyball, soccer, and water-polo games, with select American and European teams competing with the Hapoel, Maccabi and other Israel teams.
