Goalball is a team sport designed for blind athletes. It was devised by an Austrian, Hanz Lorenzen, and a German, Sepp Reindle, in 1946 in an effort to help in the rehabilitation of visually impaired World War II veterans.
The sport evolved into a competitive game over the next few decades and was a demonstration event at the 1976Paralympics in Toronto. The sports first championship was held in 1978 and in 1980 goalball became a part of the Paralympics.
Participants compete in teams of three, and try to throw a ball that has bells embedded in it, into the opponents' goal. They must use the sound of the bell to judge the position and movement of the ball. Games consist of two 10 minute halves. Blindfolds allow partially sighted and sighted players to compete on an equal footing.
International Blind Sports Federation rules require the field of play to be 18m long by 9m wide. Goals span the width of the pitch. The ball weighs 1.25kg and has eight holes and noise bells embedded. The ball's circumference is around 76cm.
Players
Up to three substitutes are allowed in addition to the three starting players. Men and women compete separately. Eyeshades must be worn at all times during the match.
Infractions
Infractions are generally punished by the loss of possession to the other team
Premature Throw - throwing the ball before the referee has called "play"
Step Over - no part of the players body is touching the court at the time of a throw
Pass Out - while passing between members of the team, the ball crosses the sideline
Ball Over - the ball rebounds off a defending player, the crossbar or goalposts and crosses back over the centre line.
Penalties
A penalty throw may be awarded for:
The team taking more than ten seconds to throw the ball
A player touching a ball more than twice consecutively
Illegal Defence - defending a ball while out of your team area
Short ball/High Ball/Long Ball - ball does not land correctly in opponent's court
Goalball is a team sport designed for blind athletes.
It was devised by an Austrian, Hanz Lorenzen, and a German, Sepp Reindle, in 1946 in an effort to help in the rehabilitation of visually impaired World War II veterans.
The sport's first championship was held in 1978 and goalball became a full part of the Paralympics from the 1980 Summer Paralympics in Arnhem onwards.
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