ParaFed Canterbury

Phone (03) 385 4449   Fax (03) 385 4425

Email info@parafedcanterbury.co.nz

Sport and Recreation for people with physical disabilities

Goalball is exclusively a sport for athletes with blindness/visual impairment. It was invented in 1946 in an effort to rehabilitate the blind veterans from World War II.

The object is to roll the ball into the opponent’s goal while the opposing players try to block the ball with their body. Bells inside the ball help orientate the players indicating the direction of the in coming ball. Therefore while play is in progress, complete silence is required in the venue to allow the players to concentrate and react instantly to the ball.

Goalball is played by male and females athletes with blindness/visual impairment. The game consists of two halves of 10 minutes each.

Classification Information

All blind athletes in all three classes (B1 – B3) compete in open competition.