Ryan Searle is into the World Darts Championship semi-finals despite an eyesight issue which impacts both him and his children.
Heavy Metal has been brilliant at Alexandra Palace this tournament, reaching the last four with just two sets dropped.
They both came in his 5-2 quarter-final win over Jonny Clayton on New Year’s Day, which books him a match against either defending champion Luke Littler or Krzysztof Ratajski.
After beating the Ferret, the 38-year-old spoke about hoping to inspire other who have to deal with eyesight problems.
‘Just a message for people out there. Obviously I can’t see people particularly well. Other people that try and play darts, if they can’t see particularly well, try not to let that hold you back,’ Searle told Sky Sports.
‘I try and be an inspiration for them. Bring it on!’
Searle deals with Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy, explaining to Darts News earlier this year: ‘DOA basically means there’s reduced blood flow to my damaged optic nerve.’
The provisional world number seven has spoken out before of blurred vision, often not knowing for sure what he has hit on the dartboard.
The diagnosis of Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy (ADOA) was only made in 2024 and has helped him deal with the issue and raise funds for research into a cure.
The hereditary issue affects his children, particularly his daughter and he is raising money to hopefully improve their, and other people’s, futures.
‘I’m trying to raise money for the Cure ADOA Foundation. It’s something that means a lot to me,’ Searle told a press conference after beating Clayton.
‘I think so far, ViaPlay have been really good, we did an interview with them and they’ve managed to raise €15,000 so far over the Worlds, which could be big for the charity. I’m really proud of that and we’re looking to raise a lot more for them.
What is ADOA?
The Cure ADOA Foundation explains: ‘ADOA is a very rare hereditary eye disorder in which there is an energy deficiency in the optic nerve cells, causing them to break down. This is due to a mutation in the OPA1 gene. ADOA causes visual impairment and sometimes even blindness.’
‘Obviously I have it and it’s an hereditary condition so I’ve passed it to both my children. My son doesn’t have it as bad as me but my daughter has it really bad. When it gets to about six foot she can see but after that her vision gets really bad.
‘She’s registered as visually impaired, so I don’t think she’ll ever drive when she’s older. Her vision is pretty bad. If I can raise a lot of awareness for that and try and find a cure for it, that means a lot to me.’
Searle is only just legally allowed to drive, which makes his achievements on the oche quite incredible.
‘It’s only over the last 18 months that I’ve realised what the diagnosis is for my vision. It’s been bad for as long as I can remember,’ he said.
‘To have a diagnosis for it is really good and puts you in that place where you know what’s wrong with your vision. There’s no cure for what I’ve got so I’m stuck with it.
‘I wear contact lenses now to try and take a bit of the blurriness away from my vision. Sometimes on stage I’m asking the caller what I’ve scored, sometimes I don’t and it puts me in a bit of a difficult position.
‘It’s hard and if I can inspire people that maybe can’t see as well as others to pick up the game and give it a go, then that means a lot to me.
‘It can get worse out of nowhere, I’m on the legal limit now to be able to drive. I wear glasses or contacts to be able to drive and if my vision was to get any worse, which it could at any point, then I’d have to find a driver.
‘It’s one of those things. It’s something I try not to let get to me. We push forward.’
Heavy Metal has guaranteed himself £200,000 with his run to the semi-finals but is now just two victories away from the first ever £1m top prize.
Is he daring to dream? ‘No. Not yet. Obviously I’ve got two really tough games left, potentially the toughest game of them all against Luke Littler if he gets past Krzysztof.
‘We’ll see what happens. I want to try and lift the pressure off me a little bit. I’m probably not expected to win my next game if Luke wins. We’ll see what happens.’
