Paralympic goalball is exclusive to athletes with visual impairments. Goalball is an intensely unique spectator sport given the venue atmosphere and extreme concentration and silence required by the athletes.
Goalball is a team sport for both men and women. Each team is comprised of six players with no more than three players per team (1 centre and 2 wingers) permitted on the court at any one time. The objective of the games is to roll the ball into the opponent's goal while the opposing players try to block the ball with their bodies. Goals are scored by rolling a ball (called a goalball)toward the opposing team’s goal. Goals span the width of the court at each end. The team with the most goals wins.
Goalball is played on a court with tactile markings to enable players to determine their location on the court and the direction he/she is facing at any time. Goalballs weigh 1.25kg and contain noise bells which help to orientate the players and indicate the direction the ball is rolling. Silence during playtime is critical to allow the players to listen, concentrate, and react.
Game duration is 20 minutes divided into two 12-minute halves with a 3-minute half time.
Three basic rules guide ball throwing/rolling:
- A thrown ball must touch the floor of the court before passing over the highball (or centre) line, which is 6m from the goal line at the thrower's end
- A throw must take place within eight seconds of coming under the control of the defending team. Passing is permitted within the eight seconds and players may move about the court to adopt favourable positions
- No player may take more than two consecutive throws for his team
Personal and team penalties may be awarded for rule infractions.
The competition consists of a round robin tournament from which four teams emerge as semi-finalists.
The governing body of goalball is the International Blind Sport Federation, with the Canadian Blind Sports Association acting as the National Sport Federation.
Classification
Goalball is played by male and female athletes with blindness/visual impairment. Athletes are required to wear ‘blackout’ masks on the playing court to ensure the players compete on an equal footing despite varying degrees of sight.
B1: Total absence of perception of the light in both eyes, or some perception of the light but with inability to recognize the form of a hand at any distance and in any direction
B2: From the ability to recognize the form of a hand to a visual acuity of 2/60 and/or a visual field of less than five degrees
B3: From a visual acuity of above 2/60 to a visual acuity of 6/60 and/or a visual field or more than five degrees and less than 20 degrees
All classifications are completed by measuring the strongest eye to the highest possible correction. All athletes who use contact lenses or correcting glasses normally must wear them during classification.
History
Goalball was invented in 1946 by Austrian Hanz Lorenzen and German Sett Reindle as a way to rehabilitate blind WW II veterans. Today, the sport is played in 112 countries in all International Blind Sport Association (IBSA) regions.
Goalball was introduced to the world in 1976 at the Paralympics in Toronto following its success as a demonstration event at the 1972 Heidelberg Games. The first World Championships were held in Austria in 1978. Women first competed in goalball during the 1984 Paralympic Games in New York, USA.
(Source: CPC and IPC)
