Born deaf and a goal scorer. Boise native is on track to play for national team

As Braden Anderson posed for photos with the team trophy, he appeared to be just like every member of the Boise National U-16 boys team. But two differences set him apart.

First, he is completely deaf, though he received cochlear implants when he was 3. The surgically implanted electronic device bypasses the traditional hearing process with electrical pulses in the inner ear. This allows him to hear and carry on conversations, though the implants also come with many limits.

Second, he’s spending the summer trying to make a U.S. national squad.

Anderson, an incoming junior at Centennial High, earned an invite last summer to train with the U.S. men’s deaf national team as the youngest player at 15 years old. He survived the first round of cuts and is training with them again this summer.

“I don’t really care if they call it a handicap,” Anderson said. “I just want to show them what I have, and they will understand.”

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