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.

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/.

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/.

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.

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.

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.

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/.

In Episode 156 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with two members of the U.S. national blind soccer team, Alvaro Mora Arellano and Ethan Kunes. During the interview, they talked about:

• Their personal backgrounds and visual impairments
• How they learned about blind soccer
• Getting the opportunity to play for the U.S. national blind soccer team
• Their recent experiences competing in some international blind soccer tournaments in Mexico and Costa Rica
• What it takes to be a talented blind soccer player
• How people can learn more about blind soccer and get involved

Follow Alvaro on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/alvaromoraarellano/ and Ethan at https://www.instagram.com/ethankunes_/.

Learn more about blind soccer on the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes (USABA) site at https://www.usaba.org/clubs-sports/blind-soccer/. Check out Blind Soccer Nation at https://blindsoccernation.org/.