"This Incredible Instagram Account Shows What Life Is Like as a Visually Impaired Paralympic Skier"
— Adweek
The instagram
Imagine skiing down a mountain at 100 km/h. Now imagine skiing down a mountain at 100 km/h, but you can barely see where you're going. Meet Menna, a visually impaired Para alpine skier that only has 3% vision. Every visually impaired skier competes with help from a sighted guide. A Bluetooth headset allows Menna and her guide Jen to communicate on the slope. Communication is everything in visually impaired skiing. The smallest mishap can mean the difference between medaling and wiping out.
“It’s a thrilling, almost heart-stopping experience for the viewer and a unique window into the life of Paralympic athletes.”
To convey Menna’s perception of the world as accurately as possible, a visual impairment filter was created in conjunction with Menna and Jen, with input from the Royal National Institute for the Blind in London and a team of ophthalmic consultants.
Click to view the Instagram
The 360 Experience
The See Like Menna experience continues with a 360 video that showcases the difference between the three different Paralympic classifications for visual impairment. The video allows people to experience skiing as a B1, B2, and B3 skier.
Perhaps the most intriguing part of this video, is the run showing the POV of the B1 skier, Marek. B1 skiers have no light perception at all. They rely solely on commands projected from a megaphone strapped to their guide's back.
