Highs and Lows for Team USA on a Dynamic Day at the Tokyo Deaflympics

TOKYO - On a vibrant day of competition at the 25th Summer Deaflympics, U.S. athletes delivered grit and energy across multiple venues in Tokyo, from the Tokyo Budokan in an urban setting to the serene coastline of Omori Furusato Park to the American fan-infused electric atmosphere of the indoor volleyball courts.

Judo Battles in Jam Packed Tokyo Budokan

At the Tokyo Budokan, three U.S. judokas made their Deaflympic debuts, each stepping onto an international tatami for the first time. In the -60 kg division, Kelvin Hernandez opened the day against Turkey in a fierce exchange of grips and counters. Hernandez was thrown for an ippon. In the -66 kg category, Tyler Blocker faced a technically sharp opponent from South Korea. Blocker pushed the pace and attempted entries, but the Korean judoka secured control and finished the match with an ippon. In the -73 kg category, Galvin Nathanson squared off with Iran and was thrown for an ippon. 

Meanwhile at the Hibiya Park, the orienteering team raced in two events, sprint relay and the super sprint relay. After disqualifying in the sprint relay due to mispunching the wrong checkpoint, the team brought the spirits back and placed 9th out of 11 teams total for the super sprint relay.

At the waterfront of Omori Furusato Park, white sands and windless conditions ruled the day as both the U.S. beach volleyball women’s and men’s pairs took on opponents from Iran, Japan, Poland, and the Czech Republic. 

The U.S. Men’s #2 team, featuring Robin Alummoottil and Artem Novoselov opened their Deaflympics run with a match against Iran. Despite battling through long rallies and shifting sand conditions, the Americans fell 10–21, 10–21, dropping the match, 0–2.

The U.S. Women’s #2 team, featuring Kelsey Brandin and Cassandra Richter lost to Japan 6-21, and 8-21.

In one of the highlight victories of the day, Kaylie Beck and Calista Wotton, the U.S. Women’s #1 team delivered a confident and composed performance. With strong serving and sharp net play, the American pair defeated Poland 21–18, 21–14, securing Team USA’s first beach volleyball win of the Games.

Later in the afternoon, Mike Haggerty and Derek Bashford, representing the U.S. as the Men’s #1 team took on a powerful Czech Republic team. After competitive early points, the Czechs pulled ahead in both sets, handing the U.S. pair a 11–21,12–21 loss.

The USA Deaf Men’s Indoor Volleyball Team made their highly anticipated debut as they faced France in a dramatic five-set showdown. The Americans stormed out to take the opening set 25–16, showcasing strong blocking and fast-tempo attacks. France responded with composure, narrowly taking the next two sets 25–22 and 25–21, turning the match into a tense back-and-forth battle. With momentum hanging in the balance, the Americans rallied in the fourth set—energized by a booming crowd—to win 25–21 and force a decisive fifth set. In a nail-biting final stretch, Team USA edged out France 16–14, sealing an important 3–2 victory to open their Deaflympics campaign.

Meanwhile, USA Women’s Basketball secured a comfortable win against Turkey with a final score of 88-59.

The U.S. Soccer Deaf Men’s National Team defeated Korea 4–2 with goals from Tate Lancaster, Michael Schmid, Samson Abraham, and Jonathon Waterman. Korea struck twice in stoppage time, but the U.S. closed out the match to secure the win.

The U.S. Deaf Sports Federation will continue providing daily coverage as athletes advance through competition at the 25th Summer Deaflympics in Tokyo. Stay informed at usdeafsports.org.