Though Tandy started this season with no wrestling knowledge beyond the occasional playful fight with one of his eight siblings, he has gone about learning the basics of the sport despite considerable challenges, posting a 5-14 record in the 113-pound weight class.
"I've always had a fighting streak about me," Tandy said. "I used to wrestle my brothers and lose."
Tandy earned his most recent victory via second-round pin against South's Emily Lombard, who admitted she was thinking about taking it easy on Tandy before the match began. It only took about five seconds for those thoughts to leave her mind.
"You can't even tell he's blind," she said. "He wrestles just like everybody else. He's really strong."
Tandy, 15, was born in Taiwan, 3 1/2 months premature. His body received too much oxygen at birth, causing his blindness. He was adopted by Anchorage's Steve and Linda Tandy when he was 1.
"Paul's an amazing kid," Steve Tandy said. "He's a go-getter. That's just his style."
Tandy, who holds a 4.0 GPA, attends regular classes at West, getting his class notes and materials converted to Braille by a teacher's assistant.
He wanted to get involved with wrestling for a few years because he thought he would be good at it. But when he finally got his chance, he was anything but confident.
"You bet I was nervous," he said. "It's hard for me to wrestle. Honestly there have been a lot of moments where I wanted to quit."
Tandy went through the same 10-day trial period as all new wrestlers who express interest in wrestling for the Eagles. West coach Shawn Silverthorn said most new wrestlers don't have a clue how difficult the sport is, so he gives them the 10 days to back out if they want. It didn't take more than a couple of days for Tandy to realize he was in for some tough work.
"I wouldn't use the word 'fun' about wrestling," Tandy said. "My legs would be sore as could be and I couldn't stand."
TANDY BRINGS TEAM CLOSER TOGETHER
Silverthorn was apprehensive about coaching Tandy at first. Though he has coached legally blind wrestlers, he had never coached a fully blind wrestler before.
Silverthorn said there's a big difference between the two so he knew it would take extra help from coaches. The experience has proved beneficial for all involved, with Tandy and his work ethic leading the team by example.
"It's inspiring. It's brought our whole team closer together," Silverthorn said. "Each kid wants to help him."
West junior Dajan Treder has wrestled for five years, and she said Tandy's will to succeed was evident from the first day of practice.
"You could tell he had the drive and really wanted to be good," she said. "He never stops. You can't get him to stop."
Treder, who competes in the 120-pound weight class, said wrestling with Tandy has made her a better wrestler. The way Tandy holds himself to the same standard as everyone else has taught her not to make excuses.
"You can lose, but it's what you do after that," she said.
IMPROVING WITH HELP FROM TEAMMATES
Tandy continues to improve on a daily basis with help from his teammates and coaches. When new moves are demonstrated to the team, a coach will pull Tandy aside to show him how to feel his way through the maneuver.
"It's an action-reaction sport," Silverthorn said. "It's move-counter-move. The top wrestlers go on feel anyway."
In a match this month at Chugiak High, Tandy nearly earned a win before getting pinned by Chugiak's Brandon Nevelles with six seconds remaining in the match.
"I had him twice in a pin, but I guess I didn't squeeze him tight enough," Tandy said. "I really wanted it today. I really wanted that guy to be pinned."
Tandy's disability came into play during the match because each time Tandy was close to getting a pin, Nevelles was falling out of bounds and Tandy didn't know it. Silverthorn said he and the other coaches have to learn how to provide Tandy with better mat awareness by letting him know where he is and which way to turn his opponent.
The rules make one concession for blind wrestlers -- they stipulate that competitors must maintain contact at all times. If contact is broken, the whistle blows and the wrestlers are brought back to the starting position at the center of the mat.
WILL A WIN EVER COME?
After losing several early-season matches, Tandy was frustrated. He wondered if a win would ever come his way. When he finally broke through during a match against Eagle River, he realized what all his hard work had been for.
"Winning is the best part of wrestling," he said. "The first two or three wins are the ones that feel the best. I'd like to win more matches, learn more moves and continue to be the best I can."
Silverthorn said wrestling is teaching Tandy what it means to set and achieve goals. Tandy said he's thinking about taking tougher classes in school next year so he can challenge himself as much as possible.
"Life is full of things you don't want to do, but you still have to push yourself to do those things," Tandy said. "If you don't do that in your regular life, you aren't going to succeed."
Tandy's goal as a wrestler is to win a state title. That kind of success isn't out of reach for wrestlers with disabilities, Silverthorn noted. Anthony Robles, a one-legged wrestler at Arizona State, won an NCAA championship in the 125-pound division last March.
"There's no reason why he couldn't get to the state tournament," Silverthorn said. "I think the sport's gotten in his blood. I think it will be part of his life in some way, shape or form."
80 STUDENTS WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT
Approximately 80 students enrolled in the Anchorage School District have varying degrees of visual impairment, with less than 10 percent of them listing total blindness as their primary disability, ASD spokeswoman Heidi Embley said in an email.
Students with disabilities have participated in various sports like wrestling, track and field, cross-country running and skiing and swimming over the years, she said. Accommodations are made where necessary and liability issues don't limit a student's opportunities.
"The district would be more liable if they denied a disabled student access to the activity," Embley said.
Tandy can only remember one time he was denied the chance to participate in an activity. As a sixth-grader, he wanted to be a drummer in the school band but was told the position would be too tough for him because he had to be able to hit the drums with a stick.
"That's the one that's bothered me for the longest time," he said. "It made me really mad. I was like, 'How dare you?' "
The experience motivated Tandy to pursue his musical interests more passionately, and now he plays violin for the school orchestra. He still plays the drums, though he admits he is better at singing, playing the piano or playing the guitar.
And now he is adding wrestling to his repertoire.
"The coolest thing about it is the way you push to believe in yourself, and believing in yourself is the hardest thing to do," Tandy said. "I've always been told I was limited.
"As long as you give it your best and put your heart in it, you can do anything."
Paul Tandy, a sophomore at West Anchorage High School, started this wrestling season with no experience in the sport. By mid-season, he had won four times in the 113-pound weight class despite a disadvantage. Tandy is blind. (Photos and audio by Marc Lester, Anchorage Daily News)
Reach Jeremy Peters at jpeters@adn.com or 257-4335.
Important warning about e-mails purporting to be from the adn.com staff.