Monday, December 23, 2024

In the land of the blind

London Olympic 2012
In the land of the blind
Im Dong-Hyun cannot read the letters on a keyboard. By all accounts, if you dictated this article to him, he could not have typed it up on a computer. His vision is 20/200; in layman’s terms that is vision which is ten times worse than the normal person. By definition that also makes him legally blind.
Yet, on Friday, when he will stand 70 metres away from a target that he cannot even see, Im will aim not just for the wooden circular board at the end of the line, but specifically at the minute gold centre at its heart. Because for the ‘blind’ Im, the Olympic is not just about participating, it is about winning an individual gold medal that has so far proved agonisingly elusive.
The South Korean’s story seems to just emanate from the script of a Hollywood summer blockbuster. Indeed, the leap of faith required to hit a target so far away that you cannot even see, requires a certain level of conviction that most mere mortals lack.
There has been plenty of brouhaha made of Oscar Pistorious’s efforts to qualify for the Games, but even there is the question mark of whether the South African’s prosthetic limbs give him an unfair edge over other competitors. While you can debate the merits and demerits of Pistorious’s ‘legs’, with Im, there is no such issue. Paraphrasing the words of the famous Nike advert, he hits targets that he does not see, but can only imagine.
“I can see the colours,” insists Im. “Without the colours it would be a problem,” he admits sheepishly. The claim is remarkably self-effacing. Playing any sport without the gift of perfect vision is a challenge. Competing then, in archery where you hit targets almost the length of a football pitch should realistically be an insurmountable challenge for one who cannot see.
But Im has managed to adapt, develop and hone a technique to such razor sharp perfection that he has rapidly ascended into the world’s premier archer.
His laden trophy cabinet includes the World Championships and World Cup individual gold medals along with his team Olympic medals. Yet he is desperate to pick up the one prize that has eluded him: individual Olympic gold.
His technique to reach such dizzying heights is amazing and his devotion to the sport is hellish. “I don’t care if I can see the target or not. It’s not important. It’s all in the colours.” Not that those are much clearer, often resembling a medley of mixed paints, difficult to distinguish. But Im still manages to ‘feel his way’ to the target.
“Archery requires very sensitive muscles,” he says. “I used to play football at school, and I enjoyed really physical sports, but I now try to avoid any sports that might build up different muscles. That might have a negative impact on my archery.”
And, for Im, that simply would not do.
(Bangladesh archer Emdadul Haque Milon will be competing in the archery recurve bow event alongside Im Dong-Hyun in the Men’s Individual round at Lord’s Cricket Ground today)
Menu of Events
1. Entry by the Head of State
2. Playing the national anthem
3. The parade of the athletes
4. The symbolic release of pigeons
5. The opening of the Games by the Head of State
6. Raising the Olympic flag and playing the Olympic anthem
7. The taking of the Olympic oath by an athlete
8. The taking of the Olympic oath by an official
9. The taking of the Olympic oath by a coach
10. The Torch relay and Olympic flame
11. The artistic programme
(order may be changed; the opening ceremony starts at 2am tonight Bangladesh time)

-With The Daily Star input

Related News

Gold medallist shooter Sadia dies

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Sadia Sultana, a gold medallist shooter both in the Commonwealth Shooting Championship and South Asian Games, passed away at the Chattogram Medical College Hospital on Monday. She was 31. Sadia, who survived a fire incident in 2017 that burned 20 per cent of her body, had been suffering from mental illness. ... Read more

Most Decorated Olympian of Australia Emma McKeon announces retirement

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Emma McKeon, Australia’s top Olympic athlete, announced her retirement from all forms of swimming on Monday. She had a remarkable career, winning 14 Olympic medals across three Olympic Games. McKeon also secured 20 medals at world championships during her time in the sport. “I am officially retiring from competitive swimming,” the ... Read more

Jake Paul and Mike Tyson receive official boxing ban following controversial fight

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com YouTuber Jake Paul and boxing icon Mike Tyson have been officially suspended from boxing following their Netflix superfight. In front of 70,000 spectators at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the two engaged in a massive, record-breaking fight on Friday night, November 15, last week. After eight rounds of action, Paul emerged ... Read more

Manon Reza becomes Bangladesh’s youngest international master

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com In becoming an International Master, Manon has broken Grandmaster Niaz Morshed’s record. Manon is now the youngest International Master from Bangladesh, surpassing Niaz. Born on 13 May 1966, Niaz became an International Master on 13 October 1981 at the Asian Zonal in Sharjah. He was 15 years and 5 months old ... Read more

Chess Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman passes away

News Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh Grandmaster Ziaur Rahman passed away at a hospital in the city after suffering a heart attack during the 12th round game of the ongoing National Chess Championship at the Chess Federation on Friday. Zia bhai is no more. He breathed his last at around 6:00pm at Ibrahim Cardiac Hospital,’ confirmed ... Read more

Handball tournament held at Gono Bishwabidyalay

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The final match of the Inter-Departmental Handball Competition-2023 was held at Gono Bishwabidyalay. In the girls’ event, the politics and administration department defeated the sociology and social work department with a margin of 12-11 goals in the final match on the university playground on Wednesday. In the boys’ handball final, the ... Read more

Archers Shana-Diya tie the knot

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The country’s two top archers, Ruman Shana and Diya Siddique, tied the knot on Wednesday. The Roman-Dia duo, who have been the two biggest names in archery in Bangladesh, are not only staying partners on the track of archery anymore, as their wedding ceremony took place at Asha Community Centre in ... Read more

Liton, Sabina, Nasrin nominated for top BSPA award

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The Bangladesh Sports Press Association nominated national team cricketer Liton Das, women’s football team forward Sabina Khatun, and recurve women’s team archer Nasrin Akther for Sportsperson of the Year 2022 during a press conference at the BOA auditorium on Thursday. The awards ceremony, namely the Kool BSPA Awards, will be held ... Read more

Olympic gold medalist and world champion Tori Bowie dies at age 32

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Tori Bowie, a three-time Olympic medalist and the 100-meter world champion in 2017, has died at the age of 32, her management company and World Athletics said on Wednesday. Bowie won three gold medals in her career, the first being at the 2016 Olympics in the 4x100m relay. She also secured ... Read more

Wayne Rooney might make his boxing debut against Jake Paul

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Wayne Rooney’s football career was undoubtedly one of the best in recent memory but that could all change now that the England legend could try his luck as a boxer. It would be quite a remarkable change, since he had a very special career, leading teams such as Manchester United and ... Read more

WWE SmackDown Results: Winners, Grades, Reaction, Highlights Before WrestleMania 39

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com On the final SmackDown before WrestleMania, Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes faced off each other one last time before the ultimate main event. The show was kicked off by the Usos. Plus, Andre the Giant battle royal match also took place on the night. About 24 hours before the biggest Pay-Per-View ... Read more

Oscar Pistorius denied parole in Reeva Steenkamp murder case

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com South African Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius who was sentenced to prison in 2016 for killing his partner Reeva Steenkamp, has been refused parole,South African prison authorities and a lawyer for the victim’s family said on Friday. Pistorius has been in prison since 2016 for the murder of his girlfriend, model Reeva ... Read more

World Athletics bans transgender women from female events

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Transgender women will no longer be allowed to compete in female track and field events regardless of their levels of testosterone, World Athletics President Sebastian Coe says. No female transgender athlete who had gone through male puberty would be permitted to compete in female world ranking competitions from March 31, Coe ... Read more

Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik’s divorce is rumored

Stars of tennis and cricket tied the knot in 2010 and now have a son together. Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik, the power couple of the sports world, reportedly broke up recently. Reports have surfaced suggesting that tennis prodigy Sania Mirza and her husband Shoaib Malik have divorced. Mirza and Pakistani ... Read more

Hans Niemann has likely cheated in more than 100 chess games

A Chess.com report has found that the scale of Niemann’s cheating is far greater and has lasted longer than he has publicly admitted Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Chess grandmaster Hans Moke Niemann may have cheated more than 100 times, according to new research published by a leading chess website. “Overall, we have found that Hans ... Read more

USA win FIBA ​​Women’s Basketball World Cup 2022

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The USA have been crowned the 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup champions after they beat China 83-61 in the final on Saturday. Ariel Atkins hit a three-point jump shot as the USA extended the gap to double digits in the second quarter, 29-18. At the Sydney Superdome, the USA led ... Read more

Japan defeated Brazil 3-1 at Volleyball Women’s World Championship

Japanese team in 3rd spot at 3-1 in Pool D Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Japan defeated Brazil 3-1 on Friday at the FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship 2022. The Japanese team won the Pool D match 25-22, 25-19, 17-25 and 25-20 at the Arnhem’s GelreDome in the Netherlands.. Japan’s outside hitter Arisa Inoue delivered a ... Read more

Ejaj Ahmad from Bangladesh finishes the BMW Berlin Marathon in 2022

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The founder of Bangladesh Youth Leadership Centre (BYLC), Ejaj Ahmad, finished the 2022 BMW Berlin-Marathon in four hours, 55 minutes, and 18 seconds. Following a full marathon in San Francisco the previous year, he raced this marathon as his second race. The 42.195 km long BMW Berlin-Marathon 2022 is a race ... Read more

Host Australia lost to France in Women’s Basketball World Cup

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com France toppled 2022 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup host nation Australia 70-57 in a Thursday opener in Sydney. French forward Gabby Williams scored 23 points against Australia to be the key player for Les Bleues. Marine Fauthoux, another French player, scored 10 points. Australia’s Bec Allen racked up 16 points for ... Read more

Japanese driver Tsunoda’s contract with the AlphaTauri F1 team extended until 2023

Yuki Tsunoda debuted in Formula 1 with his team in 2021. Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Yuki Tsunoda will remain with the Scuderia AlphaTauri team for the 2023 season, the team announced on Thursday. “I want to say a huge thank you to Red Bull, Honda and Scuderia AlphaTauri for continuing to give me the opportunity ... Read more