Wednesday, November 22nd, 2023.- The greatest sports rivalry in South America will reenact a classic in the male goalball semifinals of the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games when Argentina and Brazil face off this Thursday from 3:00 p.m. local time at the Centro de Deportes Paralímpicos at the Estadio Nacional. 

In a match that became complicated in the second half, the Argentinian team prevailed against Mexico, thanks to the significant contributions from their top scorer and left winger, Leonardo Jazmín, and the blocks from Matías Ezequiel Miranda. Both players left the field in the second half, allowing the Mexican team to stage a comeback and narrow the score to 11-8. 

"I'm very happy because this is what we came for, to be on the podium. But it was uncomfortable; we ended up playing badly, the substitutions didn't work, the lead we had slipped away, but we are happy with the work that could be done," explained the Argentinian coach, Damián Pelozo. 

Looking ahead to the semifinal against the three-time Parapan American champions, the coach admitted that he “had hoped to avoid Brazil in the semifinals, but that he and his team would give it their all against the defending champions. He acknowledged that Brazil is a formidable opponent, but he expressed his confidence in his team's abilities." 

Goalball is a discipline exclusive to adapted sports and developed specifically for individuals with visual impairments. In this sport, two teams of three members take turns throwing a ball with a sound device towards the opponent's goal. 




Written by Sebastián Urzúa y Nicolás Olea; translated by Pía Barriga Ferry / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport 
Ph: Christian Zapata / Santiago 2023 vía Photosport