The Eyes Free Sports Podcast

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 166 – Talking Beep Baseball with David Sanchez of the Boston Renegades and Jason Frazier of MindsEye Radio

In Episode 166 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with two individuals who are deeply involved in the beep baseball community, David Sanchez (a member of the National Beep Baseball Association board of directors and Boston Renegades) and Jason Frazier (president and CEO of MindsEye Radio). During the conversation, they talked about:

• Their personal backgrounds and connection to the blind and low vision community
• How they got involved in adaptive sports, specifically beep baseball
• The work they’ve done to grow the sport in the U.S.
• How the idea for the recent Puerto Rico beep baseball tournament came to be and highlights from the tournament
• The current status of beep baseball in Puerto Rico
• Looking ahead to the rest of the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) season and World Series
• The idea of a World Beep Baseball Classic
• Their contact info

Contact David Sanchez at dsanchez@nbba.org and Jason Frazier at jfrazier@mindseyeradio.org.

Learn more about MindsEye Radio and their adaptive sports and audio description programs at http://mindseyeradio.org.

Learn more about beep baseball at http://nbba.org.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 165 – Talking Martial Arts and Self-Defense with Christina Campbell

In Episode 165 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Christina Campbell, an accomplished competitor and certified instructor in martial arts. During the discussion, Campbell spoke about:

• Her early years and visual impairment
• How she got into martial arts as a child
• Her achievements in several types of martial arts
• How she got into teaching martial arts and self-defense
• Her work teaching martial arts to visually impaired kids
• Why knowing self-defense is so important for the blind and visually impaired community
• The Sonic Synergy radio show she co-hosts with her partner

 

Learn more about the Sonic Synergy radio show and podcast at https://www.hkcradio.com/sonicsynergy.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 164 – Meeting Antoine Craig, an Accomplished Adaptive Athlete in Track and field and Blind Soccer

In Episode 164 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we sit down with Antoine Craig, a para-track and field athlete and member of the U.S. national blind soccer team. During the interview, Craig talked about:

• Where he was born and grew up
• His visual impairment
• His educational journey and current Ph.D. program
• His professional career working in the mental health field
• How he got into track and field and his achievements
• How he got into blind soccer
• His experience as a member of the U.S. national blind soccer team
• The keys to success in blind soccer
• His work with Blind Soccer Nation
• His contact info and social media pages

Follow Antoine Craig on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/antoinecraig4real/.

Learn more about Blind Soccer Nation at http://blindsoccernation.org.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 163 – American Council of the Blind Staff Members Attend Super Bowl LX

In Episode 163 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we catch up with three staff members of the American Council of the Blind (ACB) – Scott Thornhill, Executive Director; Dan Spoone, Director of Operations; and Kolby Garrison, Accessibility Consulting & Compliance Services Coordinator. Along with ACB Advisory Board Member Mike Deaver, they all got to attend Super Bowl LX. During the conversation, they discussed:

• Their personal backgrounds and connections to sports
• How ACB’s partnership with the NFL came to fruition in 2025
• Their experience attending Super Bowl LX in February of 2026
• What it was like using the OneCourt device at the game
• Other opportunities to make live sporting events more accessible, such as live audio description
• Other observations about the game and other events they got to attend leading up to the game
• ACB’s potential future partnerships with other sports leagues and teams

 

Learn more about the American Council of the Blind (ACB) at http://acb.org.

Learn more about OneCourt and the device it has developed for blind sports fans at http://onecourt.io.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 162 – Taking a Run with Erich Manser

In Episode 162 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Erich Manser, a highly accomplished adaptive endurance athlete and digital accessibility professional. During the interview, Manser spoke about:

• His early years growing up in Massachusetts
• His education and professional career working in accessibility
• How he discovered adaptive sports, specifically running
• His experience running marathons, including the 2013 Boston Marathon where the bombing occurred
• What it was like getting to run with a virtual AIRA agent
• His experience with triathlons and a few Ironman races
• Returning to the slopes for an adaptive skiing experience through Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sports
• How people can connect with him

 

Contact Erich by email at manserlikedancer@gmail.com.
Check out a recent Q&A he did at https://evengrounds.com/erich-manser-on-the-resilience-and-logistics-of-blind-running/.
Learn more about Vermont Adaptive Ski & Sport at https://www.vermontadaptive.org/.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 161 – Learning about Opportunities Unlimited for the Blind

In Episode 161 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we spotlight Opportunities Unlimited for the Blind (OUB), a nonprofit in Michigan. Our guest is Gwen Botting, executive director of the organization. During the discussion, Botting talked about:

• Being the mother of a blind son, Greg, and his journey
• How she got involved in organizations for the blind and visually impaired
• Her role as executive director of Opportunities Unlimited for the Blind
• The programs OUB offers
• Who is eligible to participate in OUB’s programs
• The sports and recreation opportunities OUB offers
• The importance of children learning independent living skills
• Upcoming camps and events in 2026
• How to learn more about and contact OUB

Learn more about Opportunities Unlimited for the Blind at http://oubmichigan.org/.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 160 - A Conversation with Jacob Kaplan, a Member of the U.S. Men's Cerebral Palsy National Soccer Team and Sports Audio describer

In Episode 160 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Jacob Kaplan, a member of the U.S. men’s cerebral palsy national soccer team and audio describer for blind and visually impaired sports fans. During the conversation, Kaplan talked about:

• His early years
• His disability and how it has impacted his life
• How he got into playing soccer
• His journey to making the U.S. men’s cerebral palsy national soccer team and his experience competing on this national team
• His exposure to blind soccer
• How he was introduced to audio description and the blind and visually impaired community
• His work to develop an audio description program for U.S. Soccer and what it’s been like describing soccer matches
• How he approaches audio description for sports and the keys to being an effective describer
• His contact info

Check out the video spotlighting Jacob Kaplan at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGsvjQjl3b4&t=24s. Feel free to email him at jacobkaplan837@gmail.com.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 159 –Taking a Run with Running Guides from Guiding Eyes for the Blind

In Episode 159 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with three members of the Running Guides team at Guiding Eyes for the Blind – Jolene Hollister, Jenna Rovelli, and Sky Foshay. This team oversees the training of guide dogs that are trained to run with their blind or visually impaired handlers. During the conversation, they discussed:

• The history of Guiding Eyes for the Blind and the programs the organization offers
• Their roles with the Running Guides team
• Why Guiding Eyes decided to launch the Running Guides program over 10 years ago
• What they look for in a dog when identifying one that enjoys running
• How the guide dogs are trained to run with their visually impaired handlers
• The leash and harness handlers use with their running guides
• Who makes a good handler for one of these dogs
• Examples of handlers who have graduated from the program
• The importance of physical activity for the blind and visually impaired and how these dogs can help increase these opportunities
• How people can learn more about Running Guides

Check out Guiding Eyes for the Blind at http://guidingeyes.org. For general inquiries about guide dogs, email admissions@guidingeyes.org. For specific questions about Running Guides, email Jolene Hollister at jhollister@guidingeyes.org.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 158 – Meeting Dr. Wellington De Luna Vazquez, a Professor at the University of Tampa and Head Coach of the Puerto Rican National Men’s Goalball Team

In Episode 158 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Dr. Wellington De Luna Vazquez, a professor at the University of Tampa and has served as head coach of the Puerto Rican national men’s goalball team for several years. During the interview, Dr. De Luna Vazquez spoke about:

• His personal background
• His education and research on blind sports
• His current role as a professor at the University of Tampa and classes he teaches
• How he was introduced to blind sports, specifically goalball
• What the blind community is like in Puerto Rico and how much access there is to sports
• The keys to being a successful goalball coach and player
• His vision to build a goalball program in the Tampa Bay area and increase opportunities for blind sports in Florida

Contact Dr. Wellington De Luna Vazquez at wdelunavazquez@ut.edu or by phone at 787-929-3623.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 157 – Recapping the Recent T20 Women’s Blind Cricket World Cup with the U.S. National Team

In Episode 157 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we feature a roundtable discussion with four members of the U.S. national women’s blind cricket team to highlight the recent T20 Women’s Blind Cricket World Cup. We welcome back Abey and Drew Finklea and meet Asanda Pavlacka and Meghan Whalen. During the conversation, they talked about:

• The format of the 2025 T20 Women’s Blind Cricket World Cup in India and Sri Lanka
• What it was like for the team competing in this tournament
• What the players learned from their experience
• What the players got to do outside of the tournament
• Looking ahead at the future of women’s blind cricket in the U.S.
• An update on the development of a men’s blind cricket team in the U.S.

Check out Cricket Association for the Blind USA on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/p/Cricket-Association-for-the-Blind-USA-61573721957449/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/cab_usa_blindcricket/.