A sports columnist for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and the National Jewish Post during the 1940s thru early 1950s, Harold U. Ribalow authored three books that sparked awareness of the subject of ‘Jews in sports’ following World War II.

His The Jew In American Sports, first published in 1948, was accorded six editions through 1985, including four printings between 1948 and 1952. Ribalow also penned Jewish Baseball Stars (1984), and Great Jewish Chess Champions (1986), co-written with his son, Meir. He was also a contributing writer on the subject of “Jews in sports” to the Encyclopaedia Judaica.

Harold Ribalow was an internationally influential literary anthologist of Jewish literature, and authored, in addition to his volumes on sports, 15 books on various Jewish subjects.  Since 1983, Hadassah Magazine’s annual literary award for Jewish faction has been the Harold U. Ribalow Prize.