One of the breakout stars of the Olympics, Stephen Nedoroscik helped secure the bronze medal for Team USA in the men's gymnastics team final with a near-perfect pommel horse routine.
The 25-year-old has been drawing comparisons to Clark Kent because he takes off his glasses before competing in his signature event, transforming him from a mechanical engineer to an acrobat with the ability to do magical things on the apparatus.
Off the pommel horse, Nedoroscik relies on his glasses to aid his vision, which is affected by two eye conditions. On the pommel horse, he goes without, but he still manages to post high scores.
How does he defy gravity without his glasses while dealing with two eye conditions? Here's everything to know about the Clark Kent look alike and his incredible abilities.
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Stephen Nedoroscik eyesight conditions
Nedoroscik has two eyesight conditions: strabismus and coloboma. Obviously, neither disable him enough to keep him from competing in the Olympics, but that doesn't mean they don't make daily life a bit more difficult.
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What is strabismus?
Strabismus is the medical term for the condition known as crossed eyes. Usually developed in infants and kids under three, this happens when a problem affects the eye muscles, causing the eyes to not line up correctly. This results in them pointing different directions.
It can also start later in life, with those affected sometimes losing of depth perception and blurry or double vision. Glasses or contacts can help with vision, however. Nedoroscik has been open about his strabismus on social media, and he clearly doesn't let it affect his gymnastics performance.
What is coloboma?
Coloboma is a genetic condition resulting in some of the tissue that makes up the eye being missing at birth, possibly affecting one or both eyes. It could involve many parts of the eye, including the eyelid, lens, optic nerve, retina and more.
Nedoroscik has posted about living with coloboma on TikTok, explaining he is light sensitive or photophobic. There are other symptoms as well, such as vision loss, inability to see in a specific location, or blindness.
While there is no cure, glasses or contact lenses can help while surgery or vision aids may help some affected as well.
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Is Stephen Nedoroscik blind?
Nedoroscik isn't blind but suffers from light sensitivity among other symptoms of his eye conditions. This makes the world as he sees it extremely saturated and bright, especially in situations with lots of light already.
MORE: Olympic medalist Stephen Nedoroscik credits Penn State for success
How does Stephen Nedoroscik do pommel horse routine without glasses?
Nedoroscik spoke to TODAY about how he competes without his glasses. He first noted that if he chose to keep them on, they would fly off during the routine. Then, Nedoroscik spoke about how its primarily about feel rather than sight while on the apparatus, which allows him to stay on and complete the event.
“When I go up on the pommel horse, it’s all about feeling the equipment," he told TODAY, "I don’t even really see when I’m doing my gymnastics. It’s all in the hands — I can feel everything.”
