Athletes who are classified as legally blind must technically participate in the Paralympic Games. However, there have been rare occasions when blind Paralympians have competed in the Olympics. The purpose of sports classification is to ensure that the competition is equal. However, this does not mean that all athletes in a particular class have the same disability. Athletes with different disabilities but similar limitations may compete in the same category. This is just a handful of the sports played by people who are blind or visually impaired. While some are designed specifically for this group, others can be easily customized with special equipment and some creativity. Like our sighted colleagues, blind people enjoy participating in competitive sports and other activities. Not only is it a good exercise, but it`s also a great way to have fun and meet other people! For more information and resources on these and other sports, visit the International Blind Sports Federation website.
In next week`s article, I`ll share the story of Tim Paul, a colleague at Lighthouse, who is visually impaired and will be competing in the upcoming Boston Marathon. Each sport is ranked according to the activities required to participate. This allows athletes to do their best, with minimal impact from their disability. The first Olympian to be blind was Marla Runyan. Diagnosed at the age of 9 with a condition that would legally blind her, she was told that she had reduced her academic and athletic abilities and that she would have to significantly limit her expectations. Instead, she became a perfectionist and bypassed her disability to become a world-renowned athlete and the first blind track and field athlete to compete in the Olympics. She also achieved academic success, earning a master`s degree in special education. She gives something back to those who need it as a teacher for deafblind children. The first blind athlete to compete in the Olympics was Marla Runyan, who competed in long-distance running at the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games. She was diagnosed with Stargardt disease at the age of 10 – a genetic form of macular degeneration that damages central vision.
This list of famous blind people is the latest addition to Ongig`s series of famous people with disabilities. These 100+ people include successful blind entrepreneurs, executives, actors, musicians, and more. He can compete in 5000m, 10000m and 1500m races, where he has won several medals. In 2005, he set the world record for blind runners, which is still valid today. These are the standards used for the classification of visually impaired athletes. However, it is possible that they differ slightly depending on the sport. Here is a list of famous blind characters in literature or on screen: Marla Runyan Blind marathon runner Marla Runyan won three national championships in the women`s 5,000-meter race. At the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, she finished eighth in the 1,500 metres.
As Robert Hensel once said, always inspiring, « I choose not to put a `say` in my abilities. As an organization that employs dozens of blind and visually impaired people, we see that this kind of positivity isn`t just represented by those in the spotlight – it`s a sport we see every day among our colleagues here at IB Milwaukee.v Korean « blind » archer Im Dong-Hyun is aiming for gold in 2012. BBC Sport. March 2012. The Olympic Games focus on showcasing and honouring the strength, skill and determination of athletes. While the Paralympic Games maintain the same standard of excellence, they also give athletes – regardless of disability – the chance to live their dreams. I have never competed in the Paralympic Games. Although he is legally blind, his visual acuity is not bad enough to meet the Paralympic classification standard. Anthony Clarke became blind in 1978 when he was involved in a car accident. After his rehabilitation, he was able to get his life back. Trischa Zorn Paralympic Hall of Fame swimmer Trischa Zorn is an American swimmer who has been blind since birth.
She won 55 medals (41 gold, 9 silver and 5 bronze), making her the most successful athlete in Paralympic history. These famous blind athletes have marked the history of their sport: about ten percent of those who are considered legally blind have no vision at all. The others have some vision, from the perception of light alone to relatively good visual acuity. Visual impairment is sometimes used to describe visual acuity from 20/70 to 20/200. This means that a person who is legally blind should stand 20 feet (6.1 m) away from an object to see it – with corrective lenses – with the same degree of clarity as a person with normal vision from 200 feet (61 m). One process that distinguishes the Paralympic Games from the Olympic Games is classification. Classification consists of grouping athletes with similar limitations. These groups then compete in games. Henry Wanyoike is a Kenyan athlete who is one of the fastest runners in the world. His blindness was the result of a stroke in which he slept and woke up blind. These famous blind celebrities include famous blind actors, actresses and other artists: I have noticed at many sporting events at the Paralympic Games that blind athletes are referred to as « visually impaired », which means that any type of visual impairment, technically able to see, but not very well, to total and complete blindness, is allowed at the Paralympic Games. So I did exact research on HOW blindness is measured and how it is categorized in the Paralympic Games.
So you have to see incredibly badly to be able to participate in the Paralympic Games. Some Olympians are completely blind, while others are able to recognize shape and light, but nothing clear. Spring is here and with it the start of the baseball season and other activities, including the Boston Marathon. In honor of this, we highlight some of the different sports that people living with vision loss can participate in. Some sports such as goalball and beep baseball are practiced specifically by blind or visually impaired people, while others such as swimming and running can be easily adapted for these people. People who are blind or visually impaired can enjoy many activities, both for leisure and for competition in professional teams. Today, she is one of the top athletes at the Paralympic Games and has received several awards. While competing in the Sydney Games, she set 8 world records in swimming. The first Paralympic Games were held in Rome in 1960. 400 athletes from 23 countries took part in the competition. This happened 12 years after neurologist Dr.
Ludwig Guttmann organized the first unofficial games. Marla Runyan, the first blind athlete to compete at the Olympic Games, joined the Perkins community in 2013 as a high school teacher. Since this spring, she has also been a Perkins Speaker and inspiring audiences in the United States with her story. Runyan, who was diagnosed with progressive vision loss as a child, competed at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics and was a three-time national champion in long-distance running.