Goalball preview

The fast paced and aggressive nature of Goalball always makes it a fans favourite and it will be looking to sparkle in the Copper Box once more. 29 Aug 2012

Men’s goalball is arguably the most intense, with the ball speed averaging at around 70-80kph and sees athletes risk all in split-second and audaciously acrobatic attempts to thwart the opposition.

Dates: 30 August – 7 September

Venue: Copper Box

Number of Athletes: 132 athletes

Medal Events: 2

Ones to watch: USA Women, Sweden Men

Goalball, a sport devised primarily for visually impaired Paralympic athletes, has the minerals to fixate the world with its impressive skill levels and high risk factor.

The fast-paced nature of proceedings makes it a real spectacle for the fans that are lucky enough to view it.

Men’s goalball is arguably the most intense, with the ball speed averaging at around 70-80kph and sees athletes risk all in split-second and audaciously acrobatic attempts to thwart the opposition.

Whilst the women’s game doesn’t quite reach the emphatic speeds of the men’s, it still features plenty of power and tactical nous.

One team to be watched closely as always with ball sports is the Americans. The USA female will battle it out in a fiercely contested group against some of the world’s best but will look to replicate their gold medal from Beijing four years ago.

They defeated the hosts China in that encounter, but lost to them in a repeat fixture in the 2010 World Championships, giving the Chinese plenty of confidence coming into London.

Another female side that shouldn’t be disregarded just yet is that of Denmark. They become European Champions in 2011 and are destined to be in amongst the medals this time around.

Meanwhile, in the men’s goalball, powerhouses Sweden are favourites to top the podium. Having narrowly missed out on gold at the last three Paralympics, they will be looking to taste success in London.

Sweden’s Niklas Hultqvist reckons good communication between his team will be the difference between victory and defeat at the Paralympic Games.

He said: “In goalball, you’re very dependent on the team and the communication within the team.”

Meanwhile, teammate Fatmir Seremeti expects goalball to be a big hit at the London 2012 Paralympic Games.

He said: “I think that goalball will be even bigger this time than in the 2008 Paralympics.

“I think the sport is easier to understand today than it was 10 years ago. When I started playing goalball about 15 years ago, there were not many people who knew what the sport was.”

One of Sweden’s close rivals in the pursuit for a gold medal will be Lithuania. The finalists from Beijing will be looking to bounce back after a disappointing European Championships last year.

Both the male and female gold medal matches will take place on 7 September, with the women’s game starting at 15:00 and the men’s at 20:00.