A Colorado Springs resident is set to compete on the international stage after earning a roster spot on the first U.S. youth goalball squad the country has fielded in years.
Tayler Moses, an alumna of the Colorado School for the Blind, is among the players on the USA squad heading to the youth World Championship in Kazakhstan.
Goalball is a Paralympic discipline that draws on elements of both bowling and soccer. Competitors wear eye coverings that eliminate all sight and hurl a rattle-filled, medicine-style ball toward the opposing net. Defenders, who are blind, must listen for the ball's sound and use their bodies to stop it — a physically punishing task.
Reaching Kazakhstan has required the team to solve a significant funding problem. Unlike the senior U.S. goalball program, which benefits from grants and institutional support, the youth squad receives no such backing and each player is responsible for raising her own travel costs.
A restaurant chain stepped in to help. Panda Express ran a nationwide fundraising event on Wednesday, offering to direct 28 percent of online sales to the youth team when customers entered the code 9017040 at checkout. Moses also maintains a personal fundraising page for those who want to contribute directly to her participation.
Whether the team has closed its funding gap ahead of travel to Kazakhstan remains to be confirmed publicly.