What is goalball, the sport in which Paralympians can throw a ball at over 35mph at each other?

What is goalball, the sport in which Paralympians can throw a ball at over 35mph at each other? #bbcnews #bbc #cnnnews

Transcript

00:00Goalball is unique to Paralympic sports, a fast, skillful game without an Olympic counterpart in

00:06which visually impaired players seek to score by throwing balls into a goal defended by the other

00:11team. Remarkably, considering that the ball weighs 1.25 kilograms, roughly 2.75 pounds,

00:18and is about the same size as a basketball, the best players in the world can throw it as fast

00:24as 60 kilometers per hour, about 37.3 miles per hour. So how do they do this? How is the sport

00:31played and who are the favorites at the Paris Paralympic Games? How is it played? First invented

00:37in 1946 as a way to help rehabilitate veterans who had lost their sight during World War II,

00:43goalball has become a regular feature at the Paralympic Games ever since its 1976 debut in

00:49the men's event. It was introduced to the women's program at the 1984 New York Paralympic Games.

00:57The object of the game is to score more goals than the opponent in the time allotted.

01:02Each match lasts 24 minutes, with two 12-minute halves. If the score is tied after regulation,

01:09there are two overtime periods played, each lasting three minutes and running under a

01:14golden goal rule where the first score wins the match. If there is no winner after the OT periods,

01:21a penalty shootout occurs, much like in soccer. Each team has three players on the floor and can

01:27make up to three substitutions throughout a game. Players from each team aim to throw a ball past

01:33their opponents and into a net, but must wear opaque eyeshades at all times and stay on their

01:38hands and knees while defending. They take turns throwing the ball, sometimes twisting their whole

01:44body around in order to produce as much power as possible, releasing it at speeds of up to 37 mph

01:50in the men's event. For a goal to count, the ball must completely cross the goal line for it to be

01:56considered a score. The ball must bounce on the team's side of the court and the neutral area in

02:02the middle of the court for it to count, if it doesn't, it is punished by a penalty in which

02:07one player must defend the goal alone. If a ball rebounds over the center line or sideline in the

02:13neutral area after it has been blocked by a defending player, it is called a ball over

02:18and given back to the opposing team for another throw.