U.S. Goalball Teams Announced For Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games

FORT WAYNE, INDIANA (June 9, 2021) – The United States Association of Blind Athletes has revealed the 12 athletes selected to represent Team USA at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games in the sport of goalball. The announcement was made Wednesday at Turnstone Center, an official U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Site in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and home to the Goalball Center of Excellence and the USA Goalball Resident Athlete Training Program. Named to the men’s team were Zach Buhler (Huntington, Ind.), John Kusku (Commerce Township, Mich.), Tyler Merren (Coral Springs, Fla.), Matt Simpson (Smyrna, Ga.), Daryl Walker (Jacksonville, Fla.) and…  Read More

Goalball Group Draw: The Results Are In

The group draw for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games goalball competition was held in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday, May 10, with just over 100 days to go. Ten men’s and 10 women’s teams were represented by gold balls at the Harumi Island Triton Square Tower Y to be drawn by Mikako Kotani, the sports director for Tokyo 2020. In the men’s draw, defending Paralympic Games champions Lithuania were picked against world champions Brazil in pool A. Adding to the tension in the top-class group are Rio 2016 silver medalists the USA, hosts Japan, and African champions Algeria. USA men’s goalball Head…  Read More

The Unshakeable Focus of Josh Welborn and USA Men’s Goalball

article courtesy of International Blind Sports Federation Josh Welborn throws the goalball at the Lima 2019 Parapan American Games. Photo by Mark Reis At the tender age of 22, Josh Welborn has seen his fair share of success on the goalball court. Having been part of the silver medal-winning team at last year’s Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru, where he led the U.S. team with 19 goals, Welborn is now one of the team's hopefuls heading to next year’s Paralympic Games. As a finance student at the University of Utah, Welborn’s love and passion for the sport bodes well for the…  Read More

Amanda Dennis, USA Women’s Goalball Team Fired Up For Tokyo in 2021

(article courtesy International Blind Sports Federation) USA Women's Goalball Coach Jake Czechowski raises his arms in the air as assistant coach John Potts, trainer Jen Brown, and players Lisa Czechowski and Shavon Lockhardt celebrate a victory over Canada at the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru. (photo by Mark Reis) A couple of veteran players mixed with a fresh, younger team, together with a new defensive system, means that the defending women’s bronze medalists, the USA, are fired up, ready for Tokyo 2020.Having competed in the Rio 2016 and London 2012 Paralympics, Amanda Dennis and her team are using…  Read More