Coaches and athletes from across the U.S. converged on Rock Hill, S.C., July 8-10, to take part in a blind soccer talent identification camp. The event was organized by the United States Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) in conjunction with the Charlotte Independence Soccer Club. The camp consisted of three full days of training with two on-field sessions each day. Camp participants also attended the July 8 game between the Charlotte Independence and the Richmond Kickers. “As the newly-certified national governing body for blind soccer in the U.S., we are fast-tracking our talent identification with camps around the country,” said…
Read More
Twenty teams from across the United States converged on Fort Wayne, Indiana, July 15-17, to compete for the coveted title of national champion at the 2022 U.S. Association of Blind Athletes’ National Goalball Championships. Due to the COVID pandemic in 2020, this marked the first national championships held since 2019. It also marked a return to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Site at Turnstone Center, the training base for the USA Men’s and Women’s Goalball Teams, for the first time since 2018. Three days of spirited competition and camaraderie ended with the awarding of team medals and individual awards…
Read More
Colorado Springs, Colo. (May 19, 2022) – The U.S. Association of Blind Athletes (USABA), recently certified as the National Governing Body for the Paralympic sport of goalball, is pleased to announce 16 individuals who will serve as goalball sport ambassadors. Throughout the year, the ambassadors will assist USABA in spreading awareness around goalball programming and other initiatives via digital content and in-person appearances. The 16 athletes selected include 11 Paralympians and nine Paralympic medalists. Ten of the 11 Paralympians competed at the most recent Paralympic Games in Tokyo last summer. The nine Tokyo Paralympians include Zach Buhler (Huntington, Ind.), Lisa…
Read More
(COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.) – As the newly-certified national governing body for the Paralympic team sports of goalball and blind soccer, the United States Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) has announced the election of two additional athlete representatives to its Board of Directors. Paralympians Zach Buhler (Huntington, Ind.) and Eliana Mason (Beaverton, Ore.) will serve as goalball athlete directors alongside fellow goalball Paralympians Matt Simpson (Charlottesville, Va.) and Calahan Young (Pittsburgh, Pa.), giving the board of directors four athletes among its 12 members. “The expansion of athlete representation to 33 percent of our board of directors ensures that the voices of…
Read More
A milestone moment occurred in Baltimore, Md., April 8-12, as the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) conducted its first blind soccer talent identification camp since being certified by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the sport’s national governing body. Twelve athletes from 11 different states participated in three days of drills and scrimmages at the Maryland School for the Blind as USABA prepares to name its first-ever USA Blind Soccer National Team this October. "The level of athleticism and drive at this camp was not only impressive but inspiring,” said 19-year-old Bailey Martin of Hubbard, Iowa. “Every single…
Read More