The Eyes Free Sports Podcast
Eyes Free Sports explores sports and recreation activities for blind and visually impaired individuals.
Episodes
In Episode 141 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Emma Papariella from the Pittsburgh, PA area. During the conversation, the multipart adaptive athlete spoke about: - How she was adopted out of China and moved to the U.S.
- Her visual impairment
- Her education
- How she was introduced to adaptive sports through the organization now known as Envision Blind Sports
...In Episode 140 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Ryan Lazaroe, head coach of the U.S. men’s national blind soccer team. During the interview, Lazaroe spoke about: - His personal and professional backgrounds - His involvement in soccer over the years - How he got involved in blind soccer and started coaching - Becoming assistant coach of the U.S. men’s national team, then head coach in 2024 - How blind soccer w...
In Episode 139 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we bring back Angel Parra. Originally on Episode 23 of the podcast back in 2020 and known as Damien at the time, Angel talked about: - Why he changed his name - His adaptive sports career - Some recent health challenges and how they have impacted his physical activity - Volunteering at Camp Abilities in Brockport, NY back in 2023 - Looking ahead to his future athletic p...
In Episode 138 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet three members of the Vibin’ Vixens, a brand new all-female beep baseball team. Ashley Melero, Faith Penn, and Dakota Hogwood joined the conversation to talk about:.
- Their visual impairments
- Their personal backgrounds
- How they got into beep baseball and the teams they’ve played with in the National ...
In Episode 137 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we welcome back members of the New York Bombers beep baseball team, formerly known as the Long Island Bombers. James Sciortino, Jim Hughes, and Alex Barrera join the conversation to talk about:
- How they got into beep baseball and their experience playing with the Bombers
- Why the team decided to rebrand itself from the Lo...
In Episode 136 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Lillian Goodman, a visually impaired skier, paratriathlete, and all-around adaptive athlete. During the interview, Goodman talked about:
- Where she grew up and her visual impairment diagnosis as a child
- Her education and career working in finance
- How she discovered adaptive spor...
In Episode 135 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Tanner Gers. The longtime adaptive athlete discussed: - His early years and family
- How he suddenly lost his eyesight in his early 20s
- His accomplished career playing beep baseball
- His career in track and field and competing in the 2012 Paralympic Games in London
- His professional work and curr...
In Episode 134 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Tyson Gunter from Idaho. The longtime adaptive athlete in track and field discussed:
- His early years growing up in a small farm town
- Attending summer camps at the Idaho School for the Blind
- His education and career in sports nutrition
- How he got into track and field
- Competing in several Paralympic events, including the 2016 Paralympic Games
- His most proudest moments ...
In Episode 133 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we chat with Mark Ivy of the Oklahoma Lookouts beep baseball team. During the conversation, Mark discussed:
- His early years growing up in Oklahoma
- His visual impairment which has run in the family
- How he was introduced to beep baseball and other adaptive sports for the blind
- His career playing for the Oklahoma Lookouts of the National Beep Baseball Association and some memorable ...
In Episode 132 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Mindy Cook from Ohio. A silver-winning Paralympic medalist in goalball, Cook talked about:
- Her childhood and visual impairment
- Her education and professional career with the federal government
- How she discovered goalball and her early career competing on the court
- Becoming a member of Team USA and competing in the Paralympic Games in Tokyo
- What it was like represent...
In Episode 131 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Darnell Booker. The founder of the Indy Thunder beep baseball club and a member of the NBBA Hall of Fame, Booker spoke about:
- His early years growing up in Indianapolis
- His visual impairment
- How he graduated from two high schools, including the Indiana School for the Blind
- How he learned about beep baseball and his playing career
- What inspired him to go into coaching beep...
In Episode 130 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Rich Hunter. The longtime endurance athlete founded United in Stride, a website that helps connect blind and visually impaired runners and walkers with sighted guides. During the conversation, Hunter discussed:
- His childhood and education
- How vision loss impacted his military career
- His career working as a school psychologist
- How he got into adaptive sports for the blind
- ...
In Episode 129 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Dave Schleppenbach, the founder and CEO of Tactile Engineering. The company has developed a Braille tablet that is transforming how blind and visually impaired individuals consume visual information, including sporting events. During the interview, Schleppenbach talked about:
- His professional background
- How he got connected with the blind and visually impaired commu...
In Episode 128 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we have a returning guest, Ricky Castaneda (previously a guest on Episode 77). A member of the U.S. national blind soccer team, Ricky discussed the recent 2024 USA Blind Soccer International Cup. He spoke about:
- His background and various adaptive sports for the blind he has played
- How blind soccer works
- The recent 2024 USA Blind Soccer International Cup held in Chula Vista, CA
- H...
In Episode 127 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we feature a conversation with guests who are highly active in blind baseball. They are Kiana Glanton, co-captain of the U.S. blind baseball team, along with Ed Plumacher, president of the U.S. Blind Baseball Association (USBBA) and former guest on Episode 104 of Eyes Free Sports. During the conversation, they talked about:
- Their personal backgrounds and low vision journeys
- How ...
In Episode 126 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Richie Flores, the current president of the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) who has competed in beep baseball and goalball for many years. During the interview, Flores spoke about:
- His childhood and visual impairment
- His educational journey
- His professional career
- How he got involved in adaptive sports and who introduced him to beep baseball
- Memorable momen...
In Episode 125 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we are joined by two representatives from OneCourt Technologies. These include Antyush Bollini, the COO and co-founder, as well as Bree Fraser, the program manager of business development. This startup company based in the Seattle, WA area has developed a device for blind and visually impaired sports fans to help them follow the action when attending or viewing sporting events. During...
In Episode 124 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Ivan Castro from Orlando, FL. The Army veteran and highly accomplished endurance athlete discussed:
- His early years and education
- What inspired him to enlist in the U.S. Army and his 28-year military career
- How he went blind while serving and how he was able to continue to serve on active duty in spite of his blindness
- His achievements in marathons, hikes, and other e...
In Episode 123 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is David Rosenkoetter. The longtime adaptive athlete and fitness guru has also competed in blind chess for many years. During the discussion, Rosenkoetter spoke about:
- Where he is from and his childhood
- His visual impairment
- His educational journey and professional career
- How he got into adaptive sports for the blind and the sports he has competed in
- How he got into blin...
In Episode 122 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Drew Garza and Josh Schneider, two of the founders of The Dented Puck Foundation who are both highly active in blind hockey in the U.S. During the conversation, they talked about:
- Their early years
- Their low vision journeys
- How they discovered blind hockey
- Their experiences in blind hockey both on and off the ice
- Why they started The Dented Puck Foundation and its mi...
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