Irwin's Calahan Young driven to climb goalball medal stand at Paralympics in Paris

With the Olympics concluded and competitors having returned home, it is time for a new set of athletes to represent their countries in Paris.

The Paralympic games give a chance for athletes around the globe to represent their local communities and countries on the world’s biggest stage, conveying that a disability or impairment cannot prevent one from pursuing greatness.

This is especially true for Irwin’s Calahan Young, who contracted retinitis pigmentosa, a rare eye disease that gradually decreases vision over time. He will represent his community with pride at the Paralympic Games from Aug. 28 to Sept. 8.

“I have such a good support system. I love going home and being able to see everyone,” Young said. “I’m the annoying Pittsburgh guy, and all my teammates give me crap (when I talk about it). I love being from Irwin.”

Young used to play baseball, basketball and baseball growing up in Irwin, but with his vision impaired, he could not play those sports anymore. However, he still wanted to experience competing as part of a team. He found goalball around 2007 and has achieved much in the sport.

“When I was in high school, I attended youth nationals. In my high school career, (I) won the youth championships in 2010 and 2011,” Young said. “From there, I was invited to my first training camp. I’ve been attending training camps from when I was 16 to 22.”

According to the U.S. Association of Blind Athletes, goalball is the most popular team sport for visually impaired athletes. Teams of three players line up at either end of an 18-meter court and attempt to roll a basketball-sized ball with bells inside across the opponent’s goal line. Defenders attempt to block shots with their bodies, gain control and go on offense.

After moving to the training base for the USA Goalball team in Fort Wayne, Ind., Young qualified for his first national team in 2017. He was named team captain in 2020 and has maintained that role into the Paris games.

“I’m beyond excited because the Tokyo games had no fans there,” Young said. “This year is like my first time because I didn’t have the experience of thousands cheering you on.”

Young and the USA goalball team are hoping to improve from the performance in 2021 that left them out of a podium spot. He believes his frame has helped make him one of the best goalball throwers in the world.

“I’m 6-7, so it’s like baseball players that can leverage their throwing of the ball … to get different types of shots,” Young said.

His size is also a valuable asset on defense because of his ability to lay out and block shots, and if a team is particularly stout defensively, low-scoring matches can result.

“It’s hard to score goals,” Young said. “If a team is locked down, there’s a chance you don’t score a goal at all.”

Young and the United States will face Brazil at 3 a.m. Aug. 30, France at 7:15 a.m. Aug. 31 and Iran at 7:15 a.m. Sept. 1 in the group stage.

Young hopes his years of training will culminate at goalball’s highest level Sept. 5 in the gold medal match.

In the 2020 games, Team USA lost in the semifinals to China and lost in the bronze medal match to Lithuania.

“Going into the games, you’re always shooting for gold,” Young said. “To get to that medal stand is the No. 1 goal. We were so close in Tokyo, getting fourth place.”