There’s a lot to learn while in the throes of vision loss. Tennis isn’t usually a part of that curriculum, but maybe it should be. It’s about staying in the game, unexpectedly, with a sport promoting health and wellness, social connection, confidence, and joy.
The healing properties of this sport, adapted specifically for people with vision loss, are beautifully illustrated in a NY Times article titled, “They’re Losing Their Vision. They Still Love Playing Tennis.” The players do not necessarily have any previous experience playing tennis with sight, many are falling in love with the game for the first time in their later years. One woman, at the age of 81, had never played tennis before learning about the program, from a fellow attendee, at Art In Sight at MoMA, a program that makes art accessible for the visitors with vision loss.
The Sound of Tennis program is free of charge for visually impaired and blind players in New York, Boston and Philadelphia at Court 16. An instructor begins with training to hit the, slightly larger, ball without seeing it, then moving on to play on a smaller court, using a racket with a shorter handle. The earliest version of the ball, with a bell inside, was developed more than 40 years ago in Japan by a blind teenager, Takei Miyoshi, and the game spread across Europe and Asia. It’s adoption in the United States has been much slower, but the market is beginning to grow.
The ages of blind tennis players can easily range from 30 to 80, as the level of vision loss runs the spectrum. The sport shifts the narrative from diminishing expectations to expansive possibility. They keep coming back for the fun, the friendship, the shared experience and camaraderie.
Watch this video for more about tennis at Court 16
If tennis doesn’t grab you, consider looking into other sports like: blind golf, baseball, hockey, ice skating, skiing and tandem biking. The best ways to find local programs is by contacting vision loss organizations and state commissions for the blind in your area and searching for the programs online.
