The Eyes Free Sports Podcast

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 151 – Meeting Tanveer Ahmed, a Multisport Adaptive Athlete

In Episode 151 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Tanveer Ahmed, a multisport adaptive athlete who is originally from Pakistan and now resides in New York. During the conversation, Ahmed discussed:

• How he lost his eyesight playing mainstream sports
• His experience competing in blind archery and blind cricket in Pakistan
• Moving to the United States where he’s pursuing even more adaptive sports
• His experience at the 2025 Chicago Para-Archery Championship this summer
• His experience at the 2025 National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) World Series in St. Louis this summer
• Other sports for the blind he’s trying
• His advice for anyone who is interested in sports and recreation

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 150 - Discussing Blind Cricket and the Cricket Association for the Blind USA

In Episode 150 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we learn all about blind cricket. Our guests are two siblings, Abey and Drew Finklea, both of whom have been instrumental in bringing blind cricket to the United States. During the interview, they talked about:

• Their childhood
• Abey’s visual impairment
• How they were introduced to blind cricket
• How blind cricket works
• What inspired them to launch Cricket Association for the Blind USA
• Their work in helping to develop a national women’s blind cricket team and the upcoming World Cup event in India
• Their goal to start a national men’s team in blind cricket
• Their plans to help launch and grow local blind cricket programs around the U.S.
• How to learn more about blind cricket and get involved
  
  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/.
  

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 149 - How Several Athletes Discovered Sports for the Blind and Visually Impaired

In Episode 149 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we look back on some of our conversations with blind and visually impaired athletes with a focus on how they specifically discovered adaptive sports and recreational activities for the blind. We feature segments with:

• Eliana Mason of the U.S. women’s goalball team
• Chuck Gotus, a blind tennis player and bowler
• Melchion Ellis of the New York Bombers beep baseball club
• Ed Plumacher, a beep baseball and blind baseball player
• Roger Oberholzer, a blind stoker and marathon runner
• Calahan Young of the U.S. men’s goal ball team

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 148 - Meeting Joe Chite, a Goalball Player and Blind Sports Supporter

In Episode 148 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Joe Chite from South Florida. During the conversation, Chite discussed:

• His early years
• His education and career
• How he lost his eyesight as an adult
• His introduction to goal ball and how the 2024 Paralympic Games impacted him
• His recent experience playing goal ball
• His efforts to bring together a goal ball community in South Florida
• Other blind sports he’d like to try

Check out South Florida Adaptive Sports on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/p/South-Florida-Adaptive-Sports-100063517304120/ and on TikTok by searching for “South Florida Adaptive Sports.”
Contact Joe Chite by email at cjchite@gmail.com.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 147 - Running with Terri Rupp, an Accomplished Adaptive Endurance Athlete and Ultra Marathon Runner

In Episode 147 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Terri Rupp from Las Vegas, NV. The accomplished endurance athlete spoke about:

• Her unique childhood and education
• How she got into adaptive sports
• Her achievements in running, including Ultra marathon races
• Her take on guides and tethers
• Her running guide dog from Guiding Eyes for the Blind
• Her involvement in the National Federation of the Blind, including her time serving on the national board
• Sharing her journey as a blind mom through her Blind Mother Runner profiles on social media
  
  Follow Terri Rupp on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/blindmotherrunner/?hl=en and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064779968422&locale=ta_IN.
  Check out Achilles International at http://achillesinternational.org.
  Join the United in Stride community to find running and cycling guides at http://unitedinstride.com.
  

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 146 - Recapping the 2025 National Beep Baseball Association Season and World Series

In Episode 146 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we recap the 2025 National Beep Baseball Association season and the recent NBBA World Series held in the St. Louis, MO area. Dave Benney, a Hall of Fame player as well as the former public relations director for the NBBA, joined the conversation. Benney discussed:

• Offseason moves leading up to the 2025 season
• The regional beep baseball tournaments held in the spring and summer
• His thoughts on the top teams going into the World Series
• The early games at the World Series and some surprising outcomes
• How the rest of the games unfolded throughout the week
• The championship game featuring the Indy Thunder and Indy Edge
• How the Thunder’s title ranks historically in beep baseball
• Other observations about the World Series, including some unusual occurrences and decisions that were made
• A few teams that returned to the World Series after a long hiatus

Learn more about the National Beep Baseball Association and beep baseball in general at http://nbba.org.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 145 - Hitting the Beep Baseball Field with Joseph Fleeks

In Episode 145 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we are joined by Joseph Fleeks, a.k.a. Security. The longtime beep baseball player talked about:

• His childhood
• Suddenly losing his eyesight as a teenager
• Transitioning from a mainstream high school to the Texas School for the Blind
• His current role with Blind Professionals Network
• How he got into adaptive sports
• His introduction to beep baseball and highlights from his career on the field
• Helping to launch and co-host the Blind Table Talk podcast

Learn more about beep baseball at http://nbba.org.
Check out the Blind Professionals Network at https://blindpronet.org/.
Learn about the Blind Table Talk podcast at http://blindtabletalk.com and search for “Blind Table Talk” on all major podcast platforms.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 144 - Catching Up with Chad Dillon, a Beep Baseball Player, Business Owner, and Podcast Host

In Episode 144 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we chat with Chad Dillon, a beep baseball player and host of a beep baseball podcast. During the conversation, Dillon spoke about:

• His early years
• Discovering his visual impairment in an unexpected way
• His education and career
• Getting into beep baseball
• His experience playing with the Gateway Archers and Oklahoma Lookouts
• Hosting the “Beep Baseball Tonight” podcast
• His experiences with accessible technology for visually impaired sports fans

Learn all about beep baseball at http://nbba.org.
To check out his podcast, search for “Beep Baseball Tonight” on your favorite podcast platform.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 143 - Learning about Birding by Ear and Beyond with Founder Donna Posont

In Episode 143 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we dive into birding for the blind. We meet Donna Posont, founder of Birding by Ear and Beyond in Michigan. During the discussion, she talked about:

- Her early years
- Her family and siblings who have also been blind
- How she got interested in nature and birds
- Launching the Birding by Ear and Beyond Program at the University of Michigan Dearborn
- What the program does and an overview of its participants
- Techniques and resources for identifying birds as someone with a visual impairment
- Other activities the program has hosted
- Her involvement with the National Federation of the Blind (NFB)

Contact Donna Posont at donnabutterfly50@gmail.com.

Check out the Merlin Bird ID app at https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/.

Learn about Birdability, a nonprofit for people with disabilities, at https://www.birdability.org/.

The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 142 - Discussing Accessible Video Games for the Blind and Visually Impaired

In Episode 142, we mix it up a bit by covering a new topic - accessible video games for the blind and visually impaired. We are joined by two guests - Carlos Vazquez, a.k.a. Rattlehead, and Aaron Espinoza, a.k.a. Blind All Day. During the episode, they covered:

• Their personal backgrounds
• Their visual impairments
• How they got into playing video games
• Some of the most accessible video games for the blind and visually impaired
• Their experience attempting to play sports video games
• The work they have done in terms of consulting and advocating for accessibility in video games
• Tournaments that have been held for blind gamers
• What they would like to see improve with accessibility
• How to follow them online

Check out Can I Play That at https://caniplaythat.com/ to learn all about which video games are accessible for blind and visually impaired gamers.

 

Search for the Blind Gamers Hub on Discord.

 

Follow Carlos on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/khrattlehead/ and search for Rattlehead on other social media platforms. Check out his Twitch channel at http://twitch.tv/kh_rattlehead.

Check out Aaron on X at https://x.com/blindallday and search for Blind All Day on other social media platforms. Visit his YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/@blindallday.