A Look Back on the Road to Paris…1988 Seoul Paralympic Games

As the USA Goalball men’s team journeys along on the Road to Paris, during the month of April we’ll be taking a peek in the rearview mirror at past Paralympic Games where the U.S. men’s team reached the podium. This week we reflect on the 1988 Paralympic Games in Seoul, Korea. The USA Goalball men’s team competing at the 1988 Paralympic Games in Seoul, Korea, returned all three starters from the 1984 gold-medal squad, so hopes for a repeat podium appearance were high. Future USABA Hall of Famers Reni Jackson (Louisville, Ky.) and James Neppl (Rock Island, Ill.) joined center…  Read More

A Look Back on the Road to Paris…1984 New York Games

As the USA Goalball men's team journeys along on the Road to Paris, during the month of April we'll be taking a peek in the rearview mirror at past Paralympic Games where the U.S. men's team reached the podium. This week we reflect on the 1984 Games in Nassau County, N.Y. The 1984 USA Goalball Men's Paralympic Team. Front row (l to r) Coach Stephen Kearney, James Neppl, Kevin Szott, John Cutliff and Trainer Val Lindbloom. Back row (l to r) Winford Haynes, Reni Jackson and George Morris. The first Paralympic Games held on U.S. soil occurred June 16-30, 1984…  Read More

A Look Back on the Road to Paris…1980 Arnhem Games

As the USA Goalball men's team journeys along on the Road to Paris, during the month of April we'll be taking a peek in the rearview mirror at past Paralympic Games where the U.S. men's team reached the podium. We start with the 1980 Games in Arnhem, Holland. The 6th Olympics for the Physically Disabled (later known as the Paralympic Games) took place June 21-July 5, 1980, in Arnhem, Holland. The event spawned from the annual Stoke Mandeville Games for the disabled, the brainchild of Sir Ludwig Guttmann who had established the world-famous Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville, England,…  Read More

USABA Announces 2024 USA Goalball National Teams

The U.S. Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) today announced the 15 members of the 2024 USA Goalball Men’s and Women’s National Teams. The rosters include nine Paralympians boasting a combined 16 Paralympic medals. The Men’s National Team comprises four Paralympians, including two Paralympic medalists. The roster is made up of four-time Paralympian and two-time medalist Tyler Merren (Greenville, Mich.), two-time Paralympian and 2016 silver medalist Matt Simpson (Smyrna, Ga.), and their 2020 Paralympic teammates Zach Buhler (Huntington, Ind.) and Calahan Young (Pittsburgh, Pa.). Rounding out the men’s team are Paralympic hopefuls Tre’Shaun Faison (Orange Park, Fla.), Christian King (Virginia Beach, Va.), and brothers Sean Walker* (Winchester, Va.) and Zion Walker (Winchester, Va.).…  Read More

Boys Goalball Development Camp Signals Bright Future for the Sport

A Toyota Development Grant allowed the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) to host a recent youth development camp in the sport of goalball. Nine youth athletes from Florida, Texas, Georgia, New York and Michigan participated in the junior development camp with USA Goalball coaching staff, personal coaches and parents.  The development camp was hosted at the Turnstone Center for Adults and Children with Disabilities, a U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Site in Fort Wayne, Ind., January 26-28. Participants learned about offensive and defensive systems, tactics and penalty executions along with team building sessions, goal setting and sportsmanship. They also received…  Read More