The IBSA Blind Football World Grand Prix is a competition authorised by the International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA). This global governing body empowers people who are blind or visually impaired to experience life-changing opportunities and social integration through sports, thereby educating and inspiring the world. Hosted outdoors in Tennozu Park, the IBSA Blind Football World Grand Prix 2021 is co-organised by Shinagawa City and features overseas teams from Thailand, Spain, France, and Argentina. As the hosting country, Japan receives massive attention from audiences worldwide; therefore, the organiser and power contractors cannot risk a single failure.
Each team has five players on the pitch at any time – four visually impaired outfield players and a sighted goalkeeper. To ensure that the competition is on equal terms, all outfield players wear a blackout eyeshade and receive crucial verbal instructions from the team’s goalkeeper and coach, who are strategically positioned on the halfway line or behind the goal that their team is attacking.
While mainstream football around the world is played amidst chanting and cheering, the silence in the blind version of the game is contrasting and necessary. The many aspects of blind football are designed with numerous considerations, as it is purely sound-based for the visually impaired players. For example, the playing pitch is relatively small (38m x 18m) compared to the standard football field (91m x 48m). Hence, the sound could travel from one end to another while surrounded by rebound panels designed to create an acoustic echo to help players identify the location of both the ball and themselves (the clicking of their fingers). The ball, as well, is no ordinary football. It contains ball bearings that constantly emit a gentle rattling noise, helping players locate it within the field.
Throughout the game, the surroundings and spectators are to be quiet because players need to hear to gather information and react – any noise distractions will have an adverse effect on their orientation and communication. Imagining not having the sense of sight and relying solely on their hearing, silence is therefore extremely important to the players. With high expectations, Denyo’s customer, a Japanese equipment rental company, was called in to provide the quietest power solutions to support this significant outdoor event.
The Denyo Solution
As mentioned, visually impaired players orient and perceive the ball’s location for a kick or a pass with the sounds of their surroundings. Spectators must remain silent and the generators supplied have to be audibly unnoticeable – therefore, it was not surprising that conventional generators cannot meet standards befitting this event. To fulfil the stringent requirements of the game, the rental company had to deploy Denyo’s Quietest Generator, theMalie DCA-25MZ, to strategically power up necessities, such as lights, fans and monitors during the game. Registers at only 43 decibels in sound emission, the Malie DCA-25MZ in operation is barely noticeable during gameplay, as the perceived silence is comparable to that of a quiet library.
*Measured at 50Hz high speed, no-load operation and 7 meters away from the source.
Results
The IBSA Blind Football World Grand Prix 2021 concluded successfully, with no downtime and no complaints throughout the entire event. The Denyo Malie DCA-25MZ – the unsung hero of the whole event-has delivered a silent and comfortable experience for the talented players who performed their absolute best during the game. Denyo generator has once again exceeded expectations for achieving event success and proved to be the perfect power supply equipment for the world stage.
