(Man, I really gotta check out freestyle swimming. Sounds like an absolute party. 
)
I won’t be able to really delve into the Paralympics until I’m done with all of my DVR’s previous recordings (still have 99 videos of the regular Olympiad to go), but I’d like to spare a few words for a very unique event, goalball.
Goalball is a court game designed for players with varying levels of vision impairment. There is no equivalent standard sport. To ensure a level playing field, all participants must wear eye coverings and dark goggles (this is the only sport I know of that does this). Each side has a net which covers the entire width of the court but is only a few feet high, low enough for the players to put their hands on (and help get their bearings) while standing. Play proceeds with one player bouncing the ball across the court and the three opponents attempting to keep the ball out of the goal. If successful, one player of the opponent’s side gets the ball and bounces the ball back. The boundary lines are raised to make them identifiable by touch, and the ball has some kind of noisemaker in it to make it detectable (too quiet for NBC’s mikes to pick up, unfortunately).
You’d think that with such a wide net, this would lead to high scores a la handball or lacrosse. However, at the Paralympic level they have an almost uncanny ability to find the ball and get in its way, using, like a hockey goalkeeper, whatever body part is necessary . Furthermore, they cover the goal very well; I’ve yet to see a player drift out of position or run into a teammate. For athletes who can’t see anything at all, they have impressive court sense! Because of this, and because the shooter can’t see anything either, there aren’t really any tactics here. Basically take your best shot and hope for the best.
But the most remarkable aspect? Because the game relies so much on both athletes and officials being able to hear everything that’s going on, not only do the spectators have to remain silent during the point, so do the coaches. You’ll hear “Quiet, please” numerous times during a match…which everyone obeys. Immediately. No 15-30 seconds of lunatic grandstanding after every goddam point like in tennis. No pea-brained leather lungs shrieking nonsense the moment the ball is in motion like in golf. The game demands that everyone involved be courteous, and they are.
In all, I’d classify goalball as something that’s good to have in the background. It’s not an intense or thrilling sport, like, say, Battlebots (When, dammit??), but it’s a nice experience all around. And that it’s giving a venue to the sight-impaired is just another plus.