Jack Hodgson: 'I may be visually impaired, but I'm eyeing gold at the Rio Paralympics 2016'

Judoka, Jack Hodgson, 18, will represent Team GB in the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games
Judoka, Jack Hodgson, 18, will represent Team GB in the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games

When Jack Hodgson visited Walt Disney World, Florida, aged 12, the last thing on his mind was the Paralympic Games. Stumbling through dark walkways and knocking over bins, his parents realised their child was more than “just clumsy”.

Hodgson has Usher syndrome – a rare hereditary condition that means he has been profoundly deaf for most of his life – and since the age of 12 has had tunnel vision the size of a 5p piece. 

The now 19-year-old might be forgiven for being down about his disability, and the state of the Paralympic Games more generally. The event, which begins on September 7, has been dogged by problems from budget cuts to doping concerns, but it is refreshing to hear such an overwhelmingly optimistic perspective.  

“My condition has given me opportunities that, without it, I would never have,” Hodgson says. “I have got to travel the world, and if I wasn’t visually impaired I could be better, but I probably wouldn’t be going to the Olympics.”

At 6ft 1in and 21st, Hodgson stands out in a crowd, but the only indication of his disability are hearing aids, tucked into his ears, and dark sunglasses, which he wears in bright light to help with vision. When competing at judo, Hodgson wears neither of these and cannot see or hear the crowd. “I would prefer to have hearing aids but they break when they get sweaty, so I can’t,” he says, adding that he would like to hear his coaches’ guidance. “But I’m fine, I can figure it out, I’m a big boy.”

Hodgson is competing in Great Britain’s visually impaired judo squad: his team-mates and opponents are generally not hard of hearing, but he dismisses this as “added fun”.

“I have never heard the crowd, I think it stops me from being distracted,” Hodgson says. “My coach and I have developed basic signs to communicate with each other.”

Hodgson has adapted to training without hearing aids or much vision. When competing, a referee has to tap his shoulder to let him know the point has been won. If Hodgson’s condition deteriorates, his dream is at stake. 

“I hope it doesn’t get worse,” he says. “The hearing has been very similar for the past eight years, so hopefully that stays stable. If it gets worse, it is not the end of the world.”

Jack Hodgson competing for the University of Wolverhampton in Japan 
Jack Hodgson competing for the University of Wolverhampton in Japan 

This relaxed and positive attitude permeates Hodgson’s daily life. Hodgson explains how he bumps into things “every five minutes”, causing chaos in an avalanche of cans in aisle 12 of Sainsbury’s – any other teenager would be mortified. 

“I know I can’t see anything, if I walk into stuff, I just laugh it off,” he says. “It isn’t irritating, it is funny. I walk into lamp posts, slip over, bollards are the worst. I knock old ladies over and it is embarrassing, but nobody realises my condition and they heckle me.”

Although Usher syndrome is hereditary, no one in his close family has the disease – Hodgson simply says his parents are “two people who were never meant to meet”. Hodgson’s 16-year-old brother, Dylan, plays for the local rugby union team. “He’s the lucky one,” Hodgson says, showing the first hint of despondency. “He has the good eyes and the good looks.”

Introduced to judo at six, Hodgson has gone on to become Junior World Champion and won Senior World silver and bronze. 

“There’s something about getting thrown around that I can’t seem to stop doing,” he says. “It does hurt and you are always in pain, you are always tired, but I have never thought about quitting.”

The athlete says there is no pressure to win at his first Paralympics in Rio, so he will just try his best. Is the dream to eventually win a gold medal? “No, that’s the reality,” he says, completely deadpan. “I promise.”

License this content