Visually Impaired Student Represents England at European Futsal Championship

A student from Sheffield, Jake Heasman, 20, has traveled to Turkey to compete with the England squad in the Partially Sighted Futsal European Championships. He described this opportunity as a genuine “pinch-me” moment. Mr. Heasman lives with visual impairment, which resulted from a diagnosis of optic nerve glioma, a slow-growing brain tumour, at the age of two. While growing up in Crowborough, East Sussex, he participated in mainstream football; however, his deteriorating sight eventually made it difficult for him to see clearly across the entire pitch, leading to frustration. Brighton and Hove Albion FC introduced him to futsal, an indoor five-a-side game. He expressed that the athletic opportunities available for individuals with disabilities “blows him away.” Mr. Heasman, a student at the University of Sheffield, explained that his condition was identified after he experienced two seizures at two years old. He stated, “I had an MRI scan and that detected I had a brain tumour.” He further added, “I had two rounds of chemotherapy – one when I was two and one when I was seven and fortunately they that shrank the tumour. “My family were a huge support for me then and they are now.” Futsal, a sport that originated in Uruguay, is characterized as a fast-paced, five-a-side game played in confined areas using a heavier ball. Fifa estimates that over 30 million individuals globally now participate in the sport. Mr. Heasman noted that numerous aspects of his vision have been impacted, making effective communication among players crucial for success in the game. He explained, “My short-sighted vision isn’t very good. My distance vision isn’t very good either, so if someone was to stand a couple of metres away from me I couldn’t really tell who they are just from looking at them.” He continued, “I might go off their voice or their body shape or things that I pick out personally.” He further stated, “It blows me away that there are opportunities out there, not just for me but for lots of people with various disabilities, to do the sport that they love.” Concluding, he remarked, “I can’t wait to get going now, it has been a long time coming – it really is a pinch myself moment.” The Partially Sighted Futsal European Championship is scheduled to be held in Antalya from 1-11 November. England will commence their tournament against host nation Turkey on 5 November, followed by a match against Italy on 6 November. Their schedule continues with a game against Ukraine on 7 November, and they will conclude their group stage matches by playing Spain on 8 November.