Goalball Blazes a Trail in Training Center History

An opportunity for the women’s goalball team at the Olympic Training Center fuels hopes for the Paralympic athletes

By Katherine Palmer

As the first disabled sports organization to have residency at the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, four women of the U.S. women’s goalball team have high aspirations for the upcoming games.

In January 2004, Jennifer Armbruster, Lisa Benta, Nicole Buck and Robin Theryoung moved into the OTC complex where they will live and train for the next nine months, leading up to the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece, which will run Sept. 17-28. The women’s goalball team claimed gold and qualified for Athens at the 2002 World Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Between the four athletes, they have a combined 36 years of experience in the sport.

“It’s an honor and a privilege to be part of the residency program,” Armbruster said. “We know we are the first (disabled sports organization) and we want to lead the way. We want others to have the same opportunity,”

As a current sport in the Paralympics, goalball was developed following the Second World Ward to provide a sport for veterans who were blinded or became visually impaired during the ward. Popularly played by blind and visually impaired athletics around the world, it is a team sport. Three athletes on each side of the court aim to launch a ball at speeds of more than 30 mph into the opposing side’s goal. Athletes move on an indoor court the size of a volleyball court and are blindfolded to create a sense of total blackness. To counter the darkness, nine jingling bells are encased in a basketball-sized ball to help the athletes track its location.

In preparation for Athens, the women will go through intense training as they concentrate on every aspect of goalball including offense, defense, mental attitude and fundamentals. Head coach Ken Armbruster, Jen’s father, will lead the women’s team through their training in the coming months as well as the games. Like the athletes, he anticipates the season with enthusiasm.

“We have to have team unity and continue focus up to the games,” Ken Armbruster said. “I believe we have more talent in the U.S. player pool at this time than any other country. Blending the right six players together will be the challenge. At the elite level, all players must understand their role on the team and be prepared to perform at any time.”

There is no question the U.S. squad is grateful to the USOC for giving them the opportunity to live and train at the Olympic Training Center. “No team or athlete can ask for more than the opportunity to train daily at the OTC and have full access to the OTC facilities,” said Ken Armbruster. “I am confident that the four athletes chosen for the residency program will take full advantage of the program. Additionally, having four team members together for an extended period for on-court practices will be a luxury never before available.”

In 2003, members of the squad went to Colorado on their own and were able to train together for short periods of time at the OTC. The four athletes now have the luxury of training together for nine consecutive months and will be gearing up for Athens as a team.

“It’s an amazing opportunity for us just to be able to focus on goalball for the next nine months,” Theryoung said, “and having that much concentration on one thing in our lives will be an advantage. It’s going to give us the chance to become such a better team.”

For these four athletes, goalball was something new and different when they began. They have come a long way since the first time they ever picked up a goalball. Banta’s career began in 1995 at age of 16 when her adaptive physical education teacher suggested participating on the track and field team for blind athletes. As a member of her high school varsity team, her PE teacher knew Banta’s track and field potential was the gateway to active involvement with the Association of Blind Athletes of New Jersey (ABANJ). By fall of the same year, Banta had become involved with the ABANJ and was not only participating in track and field, but also had made it to her first goalball practice.

“It took a lot of phone calls from my PE teacher to get me there,” Banta said. “Once I got there, I fell in love with goalball right away. I had been in mainstream sports for three consecutive years and never knew of anything like it. I saw blind people doing something that was physically challenging and it changed my entire outlook of blind sports. Goalball was competitive.”

The team works with the United States Association of Blind Athletes, which continues to help and support blind and visually impaired individuals looking for athletic opportunities, from the grassroots level up to the Paralympic Games. A new goalball-funding program will give assistance to new teams across the nation, encouraging participation and wider recognition of the sport.

Introduced to goalball while attending a sports education camp at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Buck was 14 and says that her first practice really sticks out – she gave one of the guys a bloody nose. She hit the court for good in 1999. Armbruster was actively involved in basketball, among other sports, before her vision deteriorated completely at age 17. PE teacher at the Colorado School for the Deaf and Blind, Lynn Fleharty, read a feature article in the local newspaper on Armbruster’s basketball skills and asked her to give goalball a shot.

“I was hooked on it right away because it was a tem sport,” Armbruster said. “I could transfer my basketball and volleyball skills.” Theryoung’s start in goalball is perhaps the most unique. “I had had some friends who played and they first taught me on my parents’ living room floor with a basketball that had bells init.,” Theryoung said. “Then in 1993, I went to the Michigan sports education camp and played a more organized version.”

Since their beginnings, the women have been developing their skills and have achieved competition at the international level. “It’s continuously competitive,” Banta said. “There are very few, if any, weak teams at international tournaments. It’s definitely a good feeling when you do well. It pays off for all the hard work,” With the games just around the corner, the team will take advantage of their location and set their sights on September. “We are encountering new ground and now we just want to take care of business and do well in Athens,” Banta said. “We want to raise the bar for Paralympic athletes.”