Some Heroes Wear Spectacles: How US Olympian Stephen Nedoroscik is Raising Awareness About 2 Eye Conditions
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The Paris Olympics 2024 is creating a lot of show-stopping moments. One such instance came on July 29 when Stephen Nedoroscik, a US gymnast, aced his pommel horse routine, helping Team USA’s men’s gymnastics team win its first Olympic medal — a bronze in 16 years!
After his riveting 45-second routine in which he swung, twisted, and hovered his body on the pommel horse, he did what he always does after competing: He grabbed for his glasses. And that moment has become something of an internet sensation, with many calling him now the pommel horse hero.
But Nedoroscik, the 25-year-old from Worcester, Massachusetts, doesn’t wear the spectacles for a fashion statement, neither does he do it to stand out from the crowds (his routine is enough to do that). He does it because he suffers from not one, but two eye conditions: strabismus and coloboma.
But what exactly are these eye conditions?
What is strabismus?
Before the Olympics, in 2022, the US gymnast in a TikTok video had revealed that he had strabismus. “Basically, I’m cross-eyed,” he said.
Medical experts note that strabismus, commonly known as being cross-eyed, is when a person’s eyes point in different directions; one eye may look straight ahead while the other eye turns in, out, up, or down. The misalignment can shift from one eye to the other. In Nedoroscik’s case, he has the ability to “switch out his dominant eye”.
In most cases, strabismus develops in infants and kids under three but can also start later in life. While in the US, five to 15 million individuals are affected by this eye condition.
But what causes strabismus? Eye doctors note that it can be caused by problems with the eye muscles, the nerves that transmit information to the muscles, or the control centre in the brain that directs eye movements. It can also develop due to other general health conditions or eye injuries.
Moreover, children of people who have strabismus are more likely to develop it. There’s also a chance that those who have a significant amount of uncorrected farsightedness (hyperopia) may develop strabismus because of the additional eye focusing they must do to keep objects clear.
Doctors also note that people with conditions such as Down Syndrome and cerebral palsy or who have suffered a stroke or head injury are at a higher risk for developing strabismus.
And what is the result of having strabismus? Dr Dean Cestari, director of adult strabismus care at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, told TIME that the condition can lead to people seeing two images instead of one. It can also lead to sight issues like double vision, blurry vision, and light sensitivity.
To treat strabismus, doctors say, is a must. Dr William Flanary, an ophthalmologist with EyeHealth Northwest in Oregon, in a TIME report, explained that when left untreated in children, they tend to turn off vision in [their turned] eye, which can result in long-term vision problems.
What is coloboma?
Nedoroscik also suffers from another eye condition, called coloboma. This occurs when part of the tissue that makes up the eye is missing. This happens during pregnancy when a baby’s eye does not fully develop normally. A coloboma can affect one or both eyes.
As per the American Academy of Opthalmology, there are different types of coloboma, depending on which part of the eye is affected. The missing tissue could involve the eyelid, lens, macula, optic nerve, retina or middle layer of the eye.
Speaking about his coloboma diagnosis, Nedoroscik has said on social media that his coloboma makes him photophobic, or light-sensitive.
Experts note that coloboma is believed to be genetic and can be passed along in families. However, in some cases, it can appear by chance.
While there’s no way of replacing the part of the eye that’s missing, there are some treatments that can help those with coloboma. People with coloboma who have refractive errors may need to wear eyeglasses or contact lenses to see more clearly. Sometimes, surgery could be recommended for those with iris colobomas.
How does Nedoroscik deal with his eye conditions?
The 25-year-old gymnast, known as ‘pommel horse guy’, wears his ‘Clark Kent’-like spectacles while he is not performing. He told Today.com that he doesn’t need to see clearly while he’s on the pommel horse. “When I go up on the pommel horse, it’s all about feeling the equipment. I don’t even really see when I’m doing my gymnastics. It’s all in the hands — I can feel everything.”
He reveals that while he was in college, he wore sports goggles for his conditions, earning him the nickname “The Specs.” He said in a 2022 video, “They are simply for fun, kind of my trademark. I like to have fun out there,” adding that he considered them a good luck charm. “From day one of competing with them, they had a little bit of magic to them.”
And when asked about the thousands of memes that have emerged of him — he’s one of the most memed athletes in the Olympics so far — he called them “awesome”, adding, “I’m representing people that wear glasses well.”
He will be back in focus on Saturday (August 3) where he aims for an individual gold. In the meantime, one can see him either chilling or trying to solve a Rubik’s cube in under 10 seconds.