His name … Im Dong-Hyun, from South Korea.
He was World Champion in 2007. And was a member of the gold medal team at both 2004 and 2008 Olympics. He’s defending his Asian Games title right now.
The South Korean has no idea where his arrow lands on the target, and from 70 meters away all he has to aim at is a blob of color.
“When I look down the range at the target all I can do is try to distinguish between the different colors,” the world number one told Reuters in an interview.
“If I couldn’t see the colors, now that would be a problem.”
Im’s eyesight is listed at 20/200 by the Korea Archery Federation, which basically means he can see at 20 feet what a person with perfect vision can see at 200 feet. That makes Im legally blind. …
read more – Reuters – In land of archery, the “blind man” is king
http://view.picapp.com//JavaScripts/OTIjs.js
… Having become the best archer in the world with the handicap, Im said he doesn’t feel the need for going in for any eye treatment. “I don’t take any special treatment. I am not comfortable with the specs so I don’t wear glasses when I am shooting.Instead, I prefer to train harder and harder to maintain the edge,” said Im, revealing that he trains six to seven hours daily. …
Can we expect another world record? “Sure, if the wind and temperature are good, I can set the record.” …
Does he sometimes imagine that he could have been better if he had a normal eyesight. “If I had good eyes, I would have maintained the same level,” he said without hesitating. …
As coaches we should be careful not to count out athletes with disabilities.
Thanks Richard.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 