Lack of sight hasn't dimmed this athlete's unique vision

Jim Mastro's home in Bemidji is full of trophies, medals and plaques marking his athletic triumphs in wrestling, judo, shot put and other sports. Some he won as a young man, like his intercollegiate wrestling championship. Others he earned in midlife, including 18 gold, silver and bronze medals from international competitions.

One certificate recognizes him as a fourth-degree black belt in judo -- a sport he's coached for 17 years.

Mastro is not only one of Minnesota's most accomplished athletes. He's also a prolific author on sports-related topics and has lectured across America as well as in Costa Rica and Spain.

Oh yes, did I mention that he's blind?

Last month, Mastro -- a professor of physical education at Bemidji State University -- added another award to his collection. The National Wrestling Hall of Fame bestowed its 2008 Medal of Courage on him at its annual Honors Weekend in Stillwater, Okla.

In racking up his accomplishments, Mastro has amazed everyone. Except, perhaps, himself. He attributes his victories to "attention, focus and hard work."

Mastro was born blind in his right eye. When he was 11, a young friend hit him in the left eye with a curtain rod during a mock "sword fight." Surgery saved his vision, enabling him to throw himself into wrestling, gymnastics and track and field.

"I was always competitive, and I loved sports camaraderie," said Mastro. But when he was a high school senior, his retina detached. Despite four operations, no sight returned. What he calls the "green curtain" descended.

Mastro thought his athletic career was over. But he found that inactivity was "driving him crazy." So when he entered Augsburg College in 1968, he was determined to try out for the wrestling team.

His physician warned against it. "I asked him why not," said Mastro, "and he didn't mince words. 'Because you're blind,' he told me." Mastro has heard that advice -- and refused to heed it -- many times since then.

"Doctors, physiologists, employers -- they think someone blind can't do the job because they can't imagine themselves doing it," he explained. "But there was no way anything was going to stop me."

At Augsburg, his coach and teammates welcomed Mastro. "In practice, they gave me no quarter," he said. "I learned how hard you have to go to succeed."

Mastro went on to win the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference 177-pound wrestling championship in 1972 -- the first blind athlete in state history to do so. In 1976, he qualified as an alternate for the able-bodied U.S. Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling squad at the Montreal Summer Games.

Since then, Mastro has devoted his life to sports -- as an athlete, a coach and an inspired educator. In the Paralympics, which are Olympic-style games for disabled athletes, he was the first athlete to medal in four sports -- wrestling, judo, track and field, and goalball, a game that combines elements of soccer and bowling.

One of Mastro's favorite sports is "Beep Baseball," a game for the visually impaired in which the ball beeps and the bases buzz. A friend introduced him to it.

"At first, I said 'you're crazy,'" Mastro recalled. "But I hit the ball on the third pitch and I went on to play for 15 years" -- including many trips to the sport's World Series.

In Bemidji, Mastro's strength is legendary. At one fundraiser, he muscled through 3,076 push-ups in an hour. At another, he hoisted a 45-pound bar 1,300 times in 15 minutes.

In 1985, Mastro became the first blind person in America to earn a Ph.D. in physical education. He focused on his passion: adaptive physical education for the disabled.

"People often think that sports and play are not important for disabled people," he said. "In fact, they are vital for a well-rounded life. One of the greatest feelings in the world is to exceed what you've done before. Sports give people with disabilities what they often don't find elsewhere -- the chance to compete, to show what they can do and to develop skills they need to excel in life, like discipline, teamwork and perseverance."

These days, Mastro is finding new outlets for his formidable talents and energy. He is promoting "Power Showdown," a game for the blind that resembles air hockey, and is working with Cabinets by Design in Bemidji to make the tables the game requires. Orders are coming in from as far away as Kuwait.

Mastro also directs the Northern Plains Visions of Sport Camp for children and youth with visual impairment, being held this year July 13 to July 19. Its "nonstop action" includes kayaking, judo and rock-climbing.

Sometimes you can see the truth when you can't see other things. After he became blind, Mastro said, "I learned how much time we waste looking at nothing. I also learned that when you don't waste time looking at nothing, how much time you have to think."

Katherine Kersten • kkersten@startribune.com Join the conversation at my blog, www.startribune.com/thinkagain.