Blind schools ready for fencing competition

From The AP. In the picture, fencing instructor Cesar Morales, left, trains with Cory Kadlik, 19, of Medway, Mass., in the gym at Perkins School for the Blind in Newton, Mass.

WATERTOWN, Mass. — Cory Kadlik has never let being blind stop him from golfing, skating, learning martial arts or riding a dirt bike. He had his doubts when it came to fencing.

"I never even knew this was possible," said Kadlik, 19, of Medway as epees clanged, his teammates whooped in triumph, and coaches barked out instructions in the gym of Perkins School for the Blind.

"I'm on Twitter, and I mentioned to my followers and friends that I was going to be in a fencing tournament and I had ten replies saying 'Blind people can fence? Really? No way!' Yeah, anything is possible."

Kadlik duels Monday in what's being billed as a first-of-its kind match between students at schools for the blind — Perkins and The Carroll Center for the Blind in nearby Newton.

The match was the brainchild of Perkins fencing instructor Cesar Morales, founder of the International Fencing Club in suburban Boston and also a teacher at the Newton school. Morales said the students got bored fencing against the same people week after week and needed outside challenges.

Fencing teaches the balance, agility, mobility, timing, listening and navigational skills that the blind need to make their way in the sight-oriented world, said Peggy Balmaseda, a physical education teacher at Perkins for 25 years.

"This helps with orientation," said Kadlik, who lives on his own in an apartment on the Perkins Watertown campus. "When you're walking along, and you come to a crosswalk, you need to stay in a straight line to cross the street, and learning to stay straight in fencing reinforces that feeling."

The Carroll Center has been teaching fencing to its students for exactly those reasons since 1954, said vice president Arthur O'Neill. But to his knowledge, this is the first time there has been a fencing match with another school.

About a half-dozen students from each school will compete.

Any kind of physical activity benefits the blind and visually impaired, said Mark Lucas, executive director of the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes based in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The organization oversees competition for the blind in sports including cycling, swimming, skiing, and judo, but Lucas said he's never heard of a fencing tournament for the blind, perhaps because it takes so much hand-eye coordination.

"This sounds like a wonderful opportunity," he said.

Blind and visually impaired people who participate in sports tend to be more competitive and higher achievers, Lucas said.

"The unemployment rate for the blind nationwide is something like 70 percent, but we surveyed our members and found that it's more like 30 percent for those involved with sports," he said.

For the Perkins fencers, fencing is just plain fun and proves that the blind can do anything the sighted can.

"I'm not limited by the way I am," said Perkins student Sam Robson, 17, of Westport, Conn., who also wrestles, swims and runs track. He said he's lived his life facing skepticism about his abilities.

"Don't tell me I can't walk across the street by myself," he said. "I can do that. Don't tell me I can't fence. I can do that. I think it's a big statement that can show people we are not afraid."

Minh Farrow, 21, the only woman on the Perkins team, said she was inspired to try fencing by her younger brother. "I just do it because it's fun," she said.

There are no special rules and no greater risk of injury for the blind students, Morales said. They wear the same protective jackets and headgear as sighted fencers. They start with their weapons touching, then fence on command from the officials, just like a fencing bout for the sighted. There are no verbal cues from coaches, and they use the same electronic scoring devices that buzz and light up when a fencer touches the tip of their weapon to their opponent's torso or head.

To keep the blind fencers oriented, Morales uses a rectangular carpet much like the "strip" sighted fencers use.

Kadlik, blind since birth, uses his other senses to judge the movements and distance to his opponent. He listens for their movements, feeling the vibrations of their footsteps through the carpet.

"You can feel the guy step, you know which way he's stepping, and as long as you follow his blade, you are in good shape," he said.

Even administrators at the school are getting into it. Perkins President Steven Rothstein has a friendly lunch wager with his counterpart, Michael Festa, at the Carroll Center.

"We take our competition very seriously here at Perkins."