Blind tennis players keep their ears on the ball

Sunday October 28, 2012 2:00 PM

TERENCE CHEA

The Associated Press

FREMONT, Calif. (AP) — Learning how to play tennis is hard enough. Now try it when you can't see.

That's what students are doing at the California School for the Blind. They're learning a form of tennis adapted for the visually impaired.

The state-supported campus in Fremont, Calif., is one of three American schools for the blind that recently began teaching adapted tennis, which was invented in Japan in the 1980s.

A nonprofit group called Tennis Serves is working to promote the sport throughout the U.S.

Blind tennis features a smaller court, lower net and junior tennis rackets with bigger heads and shorter handles.

Players use a foam ball filled with metal beads that rattle on impact, allowing them to hear and locate the ball when it hits the ground or racket.

©2013 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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