Sports for visually impaired

1. SPORTS FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED
By- Shweta .S. Maurya
2nd year B. Optometry
Institute For Technology And
Management

2. INTRODUCTION
 The Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) survey
conducted in 1987 presented impressive evidence
suggesting that there were nearly one million people aged
16 years or older in Great Britain who could be registered
either blind or partially sighted.
 Further examination of the data shows that 90% of these
were over 59 years of age and that in all age group, there
are significantly more woman than men.
 Their definition of blind or partially sighted was 6/24 but
worse than N/12 reading ability.

3.  British blind sport currently has some 350 individual
member and 56 clubs and associations with a total
membership of between 3000 and 4000.
 British blind sport is responsible for coordinating blind
sports activities at national and international level and for
negotiating with other national, international and
governing bodies of sports.
 It is also responsible for the rule modification and sight
classification in the United Kingdom and takes a major
role in the development of new sports for the visually
impaired.

4. SIGHT CLASSIFICATION OF THE VISUALLY
IMPAIRED
o IBSA have laid down a three-class system based on either
visual acuity or field of vision:
1. Class B1: No light perception in either eye up to light
perception , but inability to recognize the shape of a
hand at any distance or direction
2. Class B2: From ability to recognize the shape of a hand
to a visual acuity of 2/60or visual field of less than 5
degrees.
3. Class B3: From visual acuity of 2/60 to visual acuity of
6/60 or more tha 5 degree and less than 20 degrees.

5. SPORTS EQUIPMENT FOR THE VISUALLY
IMPAIRED
 Bell balls
 Beeper balls
 Sound source
 Brightly colored balls, bean bags, carpet squares,
hoola hoops, cones, etc.

6. MODIFICATION OF SPORTS
 As a general principle, a sighted sport is taken and
modifies a little as possible in order that blind people can
compete.
 Occasionally, a port has been developed by the visually
impaired which has no non-disabled counterpart. For the
reader interested in how this sport of GOALBALL is
played .
 Modification may be made to the rules or to the
equipment.

7. TEAM SPORTS
 Safety is the most important aspect of any sports
activity
 Begin teaching lead up skills at a young age
 Use modified equipment
 Allow visually impaired child to choose teams
 Switch teams or partners frequently
 Never allow "regular" kids to pick teams (students
with disabilities will be left out)
 Adjust size of field.

8.  Use sighted guides or buddies
 Keep area clear
 Allow plenty of practice time
 Modify rules to needs of student
 Reduce number of players on field/court
 Brightly colored boundary lines
 Place orange cones at bases and base lines
 Have brightly colored t- shirts for different teams
 Make tactual "maps" of playing area
 Allow student to explore equipment

9. TAKING UP SPORTS
 Considerable confusion exists amongst sighted people as
to how the visually impaired learn sporting skill.
 Initially they are exposed to the sport as a child or an
adult.
 Generally they learn the rudiment of the sports by
watching.
 To summarize, for anyone to teach any skills to be a
visually impaired person, they need to be able to
communicate effectively in a non-visual fashion while
recognizing that whatever useful vision that person retains
should be used when feasible.

10. IDEAS FOR ADAPTATION
Adaptations
 Adaptations are very common and can be applied to nearly
every game or sport that a visually impaired child can
participate in. Included are also some tips to remember when
using these types of adaptations.
 Tactile Cues
 Tactile Cues Different surfaces on the floor can improve
orientation and signal field boundaries and out of-bounds
areas.
 Put a cord underneath tape so the child can feel when they
have gone out of bounds .
 A thin strip of wood or mats can also be used to mark
boundaries

11.  Auditory Cues
 Describe all activities verbally in good detail and/or print
them in Braille or large print
 Start with basic commands and make sure the child
understands and can perform those, before moving onto
more complicated activities
 Provide immediate and accurate feedback so that necessary
adjustments can be made
 Use audible balls, goals, and boundaries. These can be
purchased commercially or created using common items
such as bells and radios. Note that placing a bell in a light
weight ball might cause the ball to move erratically.

12. BRAILLE PRINTS

13. OTHER COMMON ADAPTATIONS
 Even for individuals with a lot of training and practice,
mobility, especially the fast paced mobility of some sports
and games, is difficult for someone with a visual
impairment.
 Slow down the action by using lightweight balls and rolling
instead of throwing the ball
 Make games where students hit a stationary ball instead of a
moving one
 For team games, pair visually impaired students with sighted
students to slow down the game; the pairs move together
and the children must remain in contact at all times

14. IDEAS FOR INSTRUCTION
There are important safety considerations to remember. Make
sure that all necessary precautions are taken.
 Orient the child within the facilities paying special
attention to exits
 Allow the visually impaired child to examine the playing
area prior to playing and practice using the equipment
 Once a child has become oriented, do not change
equipment locations
 Ensure safety rules are known by all students
 Remove hazards from the play area
 Approve possibly hazardous activities with an
ophthalmologist

15. POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT
 Encourage students to work independently, where possible
 Motivate the child by telling them if they are performing
correctly and reassure them if it is taking a long time to learn
a skill
 Make sure the teacher or parent chooses the teams
 Switch teams or partners often

16. EXERCISES AND STRENGTHENING ACTIVITIES
 Prior to participating in activities all children should
participate in warm-up exercises and basic
strengthening activities.
 These exercises and activities will ensure the safety of
children, so that they don’t pull muscles, and increase
muscle strength and flexibility.
 They will also improve balance and coordination, and
other basic skills that are essential to all sports and
games.

17.  Yoga
 Low Impact Aerobics
 Stretches such as, Lunges, Shoulder, Bicep and Tricep
Stretches, etc
 Hand weights are good for basic exercises, such as tricep curls,
bicep curls, shoulder shrugs, side steps, lunges and side and
knee bends

18. MIXED DISABILITY SPORTS
This seems to work satisfactorily in those sports
involving a team in which the participants have
different function or where the priority is participating
rather than competing

19. TEAM SPORTS
 Basketball
 Insert a bell into the basketball
 Use a bright colored ball
 Place a sound source behind the backboard
 Have players use bounce passes
 Players may be allowed to shoot without
interference.
 Score one point for hitting backboard, two points
for hitting the rim, and three points for getting the
ball in the net
 Lower the basketball hoop
 Call to the partially sighted child when passing

20.  Dodge Ball
 Pair the visually impaired child with a sighted
child to assist them.
 When the blind student is attempting to hit
someone with the ball the other children should
clap hands or shout

21. GOALBALL
 Goalball is a sport developed specifically for the
visually impaired.
 Any participants should wear blindfolds to
negate any advantage from residual vision.
 Goalball has become a fairly popular sport and
has been a part of the Paralympics since 1976.
 The following is a short summary of the rules of
Goalball.
 Equipment: Equipment: Goalball (or bell ball)
tape and cords to mark boundaries

22.  Setup: The playing field is divided in half, with a team
of three on each half.
 Each team's goal line lies
at the far end of the playing
field behind the respective team.
 Each side of the field is
again divided in half and
players are restricted to
behind this quarter line.
 Another two lines are drawn about 1/5 of the distance
from the center line to each goal line. These lines are
called the overthrow lines.
 The purpose of the game is for one team to roll the
goalball past the other team and over the goal line at
the far end of the field.

23.  Play: Play starts with one team in possession of the
ball.
 Offensive players have only a limited amount of time
before they must throw the ball and may only throw
three times consecutively before another player must
throw.
 Defensive players may use any part of their body to
stop the ball.
 If the ball is thrown out of bounds, the opposing team
takes possession.
 A point is awarded if the ball rolls over the opposing
teams goal line after which the defending team gains
possession of the ball.
 Note that the ball must be rolled and not thrown; the
ball must touch the floor at least once before reaching
the overthrow line

24. INDIVIDUAL ACTIVITIES
 Aerobics
 Step Aerobics - The child steps on and off a platform
in different directions at varying tempos.
 High Impact Aerobics - Constant activity where the
child doing large amounts of conditioning. Both feet
leave the floor. Some activities that can be done
include pendulum leg swings, side and front jumps,
and jumping jacks.

25.  Low Impact Aerobics - Constant activity where the
individual is moving and keeping their heart rate up.
The child can march in place, walk briskly, do toe
touches, kick forward, etc. Only one foot leaves the
floor at a time.

26. DANCING
 Orientation
 Two blind individuals dancing together may become
disoriented. Try to pair sighted and visually
impaired children.
 Clearly describe the space and instruct the children
to count their steps.
 Put an assistant with maracas at points on the
stage to help with spatial orientation.
 Use tactile cues (rope, scarves, costumes) to help
the student identify their location.

27.  Movement
 Take time to go through each movement slowly and
frequently until everyone feels confident when
learning a new dance.
 When creating sequences precisely describe what is
being done. Describe the physical sensation of the
movement as well.
 It may help the child to put their hands on another
dancer’s waist or shoulder to feel the kinesthetic
concepts of time, space, and size
 Balancing may be challenging, so help the student to
feel grounded and balanced.

28. OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
 Volleyball
 Use a larger and softer ball, such as a beach ball
 The ball should have a bell inside and be brightly colored
 Place brightly colored tape on top of the net
 Lower the net
 One variation is where the volleyball is thrown from one side
of the court to the other and the other team tries to catch it.
 It is thrown back and forth until the ball is dropped.
 When the ball is dropped a point is scored by the opposing
team.

29.  Have everyone on a side hit the ball before sending it
over the net
 Don’t allow any one player to hit the ball twice in a row
 See how long the ball can be kept in the air and
volleyed back and forth

30. SHOOTING
 A special rifle is used.
 The rifle has a sight that is designed to collect and
measure the level of light reflected from the target using
a photo-electric cell which is then converted into sound.
 A special target is used.
 The center of the target is brilliant white and then moving
outwards from the center increasingly darker levels of
grey are encountered until off the target is matt black.
 The target requires extremely bright illumination

31.  The closer to the center of the target you are aiming the
greater the level of light reflected and hence the higher
the frequency of sound which is heard by the shooter via
a pair of headphones.
 The sights are adjustable in the normal way to alter the
mean point of impact. An assistant should be used to
ensure safety and to help them “find the target”.

32. GOLF
 Use plastic clubs for younger children
 Use brightly colored balls
 Have a guide for course navigation.
 The guide should give feedback as to correct positioning
and directionality for each shot and can help give
assistance with club use when necessary.

33. CHALLENGING ACTIVITIES
 Badminton
 Handball
 Hockey
 Soccer
 Table tennis
 Tennis
 Football
 Archery

34. THANK YOU