DARTS star Ryan Searle has opened up on his struggles in finding a cure to his and his daughter’s debilitating eye disease.
Searle, known as Heavy Metal for his love of rock music, chunky 34g arrows and rockstar hair, suffers from Dominant Optic Atrophy.
ThePDCdarts star, 37,is currently the world No19and has reached the last-16 at thethree times.
The genetic condition causes him blurred vision, with Searle admitting he has “learned to live”; with its effects.
Searle explained toDarts News: “DOA basically means there’s reduced blood flow to my damaged optic nerve.
“I wear contact lenses now, so it’s not as bad. My vision’s not as blurry anymore.
“I don’t have to keep stopping to ask what I’ve scored or what’s left, and that’s helped my game a lot.”;
When asked if was legally blind, Searle joked: “It’s getting there — pretty close.
“But no, not quite. I can still legally drive, just about.”;
Searle only discovered he had the condition in the past couple of years — after his daughter Amelia was diagnosed.
He said: “It comes in different severities — mine’s fairly bad, but hers is really bad.
“She’s registered as visually impaired and she’ll probably never be able to drive.
“I’ve been speaking with a charity who are trying to raise money to find a cure because there isn’t one.
“Whatever vision you’re born with, that’s what you’re stuck with.
“I’m going to have a patch on my shirt soon for the charity, to try and raise awareness and hopefully help get closer to a cure.”;
Despite his rise up the rankings, Heavy Metal is yet to win a major TV tournament.
Searle came closest in 2021, losing in the Players Championship Finals to.
He previously said: “I’ve learned to live with it, but it does affect me – I can’t always see where my dart lands.
“That’s why you’ll often see me asking the referee what I’ve thrown.”;
Searle also shares a son with wife Sophie Cosh.
