The Eyes Free Sports Podcast: Ep. 18 - A Chat with Paralympian & Fitness Guru Tyler Merren (Part 1)

<p>In Episode 18 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we feature Part 1 of our conversation with Paralympic medalist and personal trainer Tyler Merren. In this part of our discussion, Merren spoke about: </p> <ul><li>His take on the meaning of a champion, whether it’s in sports or in any other aspect of our lives</li> <li>His early years and losing his eyesight as a young teenager</li> <li>How his parents first reacted to his vision loss diagnosis of retinitis pigmentosa (RP)</li> <li>How he was introduced to goal ball at a blind sports clinic at Western Michigan University and how he quickly became good enough to compete nationally and internationally</li> <li>Competing in the Paralympic Games and how it feels to walk into a Paralympic stadium sporting the red, white, and blue of Team USA</li> <li>His first Paralympics in Athens, Greece in 2004 and what it was like defeating Team Canada in the men’s goal ball bronze medal match, 5-4</li> <li>How the goal ball matches are structured and scheduled in the Paralympics</li> <li>How goal ball is played and a brief history of the sport</li> <li>The keys to being a successful goal ball player</li> </ul> <p> </p> <p>Catch Part 2 of our interview with Tyler Merren in Episode 19 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast. Check out his website at <a href='http://www.tylermerren.com'>www.tylermerren.com</a>. Follow him on Twitter at <a href='http://twitter.com/tylermerren'>http://twitter.com/tylermerren</a>. </p>