Skip to main content
District

Athletics

The Mississippi School for the Blind has a rich athletic history and continuously produces championship teams through its various sports.  We are proud to have the longest-sanctioned high school wrestling program in the State of Mississippi, established in 1974. Students at MSB will be given the opportunity to reach their fullest potential through extensive training and appropriate coaching strategies and techniques as they dedicate themselves to the athletic program. We aim to produce young men and women who have the capacity to be successful citizens in our highly competitive society and who have a commitment to lifelong fitness. The athletics program offers opportunities to promote self-realization and all-around growth through the development of good sportsmanship and collaboration.

The major objective of the athletic programs is to provide wholesome opportunities for students to develop positive and responsible habits and attitudes toward group and social living. Through the athletics program, the student-athlete develops a healthy self-concept, as well as a healthy body, by developing skills necessary for team participation. Our goal is to assist each student-athlete in reaching their maximum potential by providing them with opportunities to excel in sports and a commitment to lifelong fitness. 

MSB is a 1A school sanctioned by the Mississippi High School Athletic Association in wrestling, cheerleading and track and field. MSB is also a founding member of the South Central Association of Schools for the Blind and competes in the following sports and activities:  wrestling, cheerleading, GoalBall, track and field, and narrative arts.

MSB Athletic Handbook & Team Schedules

a group of cheerleaders

Cheerleading

The MSB Cheerleading program provides students with an opportunity to participate in a very unique sport.  The students involved, available to both boys and girls, learn both fitness and cooperation. Cheerleaders are provided the opportunity to travel to other states to compete, as well as compete in state-level competitions and clinics.  MSB competes in the South Central Association of Schools for the Blind (SCASB) annual cheerleading and wrestling tournament held in January.

Track and Field

The Mississippi School for the Blind track program consists of both a boys and girls team.  The teams competes in track and field events with other schools for the blind in the South Central Association of School for the Blind (NCASB) as well as local public schools through the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA).  The Classifications system used for competition among schools for the blind includes: 

  • Class A is for students with total blindness, who may possess light perception, but are unable to recognize hand shapes at any distance.
  • Class B is for students with a visual acuity of 10/200  in better eye after best correction and/or no better than five degrees of visual field.
  • Class C is for students with visual acuity better than 10/200 in the better eye after best correction or six degrees or better of visual field.

These classifications ensure that students with different visual functioning compete with students with similar visual abilities.

a group of student athletes posing for a photo

a group of people posing for a photo

GoalBall

Goalball is a team sport designed for blind athletes. It was devised by an Austrian, Hanz Lorenzen, and a German, Sepp Reindle, in 1946 in an effort to help in the rehabilitation of visually impaired World War II veterans. The International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA – www.ibsa.es responsible for fifteen sports for the blind and partially sighted in total, is the governing body for this sport, along with the United States Association of Blind Athletes (USABA). The sport evolved into a competitive game over the next few decades and was a demonstration event at the 1976 Summer Paralympics in Toronto. The sport’s first championship was held in 1978 and goalball became a full part of the Paralympics from the 1980 Summer Paralympics in Arnhem onwards.  The MSB Goalball team was started four years ago and competes against other schools for the blind around the country, culminating in the U.S.A.B.A. National High School GoalBall Championships held in November of each year.

Wrestling

The MSB wrestling program was officially started in 1974 and is the longest sanctioned program in the State of Mississippi.  Interscholastic competition is held between public schools across the State of Mississippi sanctioned through the Mississippi High Schools Athletic Association (MHSAA). We also compete with other schools for the blind in the South Central Association of Schools for the Blind Conference (SCASB).  SCASB is composed of state schools for the blind and sponsors wrestling competitions as part of its interscholastic sports program.  This program provides students with visual impairments the opportunity to compete on an equal basis with other students in athletic competitions and tournaments.

Two wrestlrs about to begin a match     Two wrestlers in a match

Two wrestlers in a match     Two wrestlers in a match