Trischa Zorn
Overview
A blind swimmer with a vision… many people do not understand this. Trischa Zorn, born without both irises (a disease called Aniridia), has always been a persistent and persevering person. From her childhood she dreamed of being famous. This inspired her to accomplish every-day tasks which other blind people could only dream of. She is now well-known as the most decorated Olympian and Paralympian.
Blinded by the light
On the June 1, 1964 in Orange, California a beautiful baby was born to Mike & Donna Zorn (nee Osborne) when first handed to her proud and loving mother many of the nurses, doctors and other hospital staff had their fingers crossed. This baby had been born without irises making her look very different to most babies, Trischa Zorn was smart from the very start, she reacted to her name by the time she was 3 months. Being born without irises meant her eyes didn’t adjust to light to protect the retina like they should, thus allowing the bright light to penetrate and blind her completely by the time she was 11, Trischa later described it as being like walking out of a dark movie theatre into bright sunlight, her eyes unlike most other people’s didn’t close at all as they couldn’t tell whether it was light or dark. She played on the Nebraska ‘Mini Huskers’ team until she was eleven when she was totally blind and they took her off the team for safety reasons. Yet still she had no desire to let her disability hold her back. Being the eleventh child in a family of 13 girls compelled her to keep ahead and not be beaten by her siblings. When playing games, they would often offer her a handicap to help her achieve but she never, ever took it. “Why can’t I play by your rules?” Trischa would often ask, “I might not be good but I can improve, they say to learn from your mistakes.” Before long, Trischa could play any games within their yard with her eyes closed. This amazed many people that didn’t know she was blind. She did well academically and physically.
A blind swimmer with a vision… many people do not understand this. Trischa Zorn, born without both irises (a disease called Aniridia), has always been a persistent and persevering person. From her childhood she dreamed of being famous. This inspired her to accomplish every-day tasks which other blind people could only dream of. She is now well-known as the most decorated Olympian and Paralympian.
Blinded by the light
On the June 1, 1964 in Orange, California a beautiful baby was born to Mike & Donna Zorn (nee Osborne) when first handed to her proud and loving mother many of the nurses, doctors and other hospital staff had their fingers crossed. This baby had been born without irises making her look very different to most babies, Trischa Zorn was smart from the very start, she reacted to her name by the time she was 3 months. Being born without irises meant her eyes didn’t adjust to light to protect the retina like they should, thus allowing the bright light to penetrate and blind her completely by the time she was 11, Trischa later described it as being like walking out of a dark movie theatre into bright sunlight, her eyes unlike most other people’s didn’t close at all as they couldn’t tell whether it was light or dark. She played on the Nebraska ‘Mini Huskers’ team until she was eleven when she was totally blind and they took her off the team for safety reasons. Yet still she had no desire to let her disability hold her back. Being the eleventh child in a family of 13 girls compelled her to keep ahead and not be beaten by her siblings. When playing games, they would often offer her a handicap to help her achieve but she never, ever took it. “Why can’t I play by your rules?” Trischa would often ask, “I might not be good but I can improve, they say to learn from your mistakes.” Before long, Trischa could play any games within their yard with her eyes closed. This amazed many people that didn’t know she was blind. She did well academically and physically.