Columbus High soccer player shines on the field, in the classroom despite severe hearing loss

Joaquin Real, cut from the Columbus soccer program as a freshman, was about to get dismissed yet again as a sophomore.

Michael Stewart, the Explorers’ no-nonsense coach, was clearly frustrated with Real not following his orders.

Finally, an exasperated Stewart yelled at Real:

“Are you deaf?”

That’s when a teammate told Stewart that, um, yes, Coach, he kind of is, and Real reluctantly produced his hearing aids as proof.

“I’ve never wanted people to make accommodations for me,” Real said when asked why he had not let Stewart know previously. “I have the same opportunity to make the team as everyone else.”

Real, who turns 18 on Tuesday, is now a senior and one of the top stars on a Columbus team that last season went 17-4-2, reaching the regional quarterfinals. In a defensive-minded midfield role last season, Real had two goals and three assists.

But it’s not just soccer where Real excels. Despite arriving in Miami from his native Panama at age 8 with very limited English-language skills … and despite 80 percent hearing loss in his left ear and 70 percent hearing loss in his right, Real is one of the top scholars at Columbus.

His 5.33 grade-point average is ranked among the top 10 students in Columbus’ senior class, and he is taking theology, English and five advanced placement courses: calculus, macroeconomics, physics, psychology and government.

Real, who has scored a 34 out of a possible 36 on the ACT, is set to apply to three Ivy League schools — Harvard, Columbia and the University of Pennsylvania — along with other universities such as Georgetown and Miami.

His ultimate goal is to study business then become a corporate lawyer.

“He fills me with pride,” said his mother, Tammy Real. “He has a very inspirational story because he never gives up. He never makes excuses.

“When he got cut as a freshman, he got a personal trainer and worked super hard. But that’s the way Joaquin is. He just keeps on going, always with a smile on his face.”

THE DISCOVERY

The TV in Joaquin’s room back in Panama was on “super loud”, and that was the first clue.

Beyond that, Real barely spoke despite being 3½ years old.

Alarmed, his parents — Uba and Tammy — took him to doctors, who at first thought it was meningitis.

Years later, after being misdiagnosed, doctors finally discovered that both Uba and Tammy carried the gene that caused the hearing loss.

When Joaquin got fitted for his first hearing aid at 3½, Tammy said she cried quite a bit.

“I was totally devastated,” she said. “I didn’t know what would await him in the world.”

As it turns out, Real has achieved more than anyone could have dreamed, and it started with that first hearing aid. All of a sudden, he was able to hear the turn signal of his father’s car, the sound of birds singing and the noise he could make by tapping on a desk.

Real, who had been about two years behind on speech development, doubled up on therapy until he caught up … and then he kept learning.

But it hasn’t been easy. Hearing aids only allow him to pick up about 75 percent of the words spoken near his vicinity. He reads lips and uses context to more fully understand.

“They fill in the gaps for each other,” Real said of his hearing aids and his lip-reading.

Athletically, Real at first tried just about every sport — from baseball and football to tennis and golf. But he found his niche with soccer.

“In soccer, I can move around and be more free,” Joaquin said, “not relying on my hearing too much.”

Aside from the obvious disadvantages, Real said there are times he can use his hearing loss as a positive.

For example, when he wants to study in a noisy cafeteria, he can take his hearing aids out and hit the books with no distractions. And if his parents are nagging him, he might be inclined to lower the volume a bit on his hearing aids.

Real, who has 20/20 eyesight, feels his vision is perhaps his biggest asset on the pitch.

“Hearing aids don’t work when they are wet,” Real explained. “When it’s raining, I take them out. I rely mainly on my vision. I don’t hear anything. It’s silent, but I see everything clearly.

“I feel like that’s when I play my best.”

ROUGH START

Last month, on Oct. 21, Real did something that rarely happens to him — he overslept.

The timing could not have been worse. This was tryout day for Columbus soccer, and, even though he was by then a veteran on the team, he still had to go through the process.

He had set his alarm — which he puts underneath his pillow — for 4:50 a.m. in order to make the early morning tryout.

“That alarm vibrates my bed like an earthquake,” Real said. “I don’t know why it didn’t go off or if I slept through it, but I got there too late for the tryout.”

True to his nature, Real didn’t use his hearing loss as an excuse with Stewart. Real took his punishment, which meant trying out with the rookies later that night and also running for nearly two hours.

Since then, Stewart has clearly forgiven Real’s transgression, and Joaquin is hoping his senior season will yield one or more offers to play college soccer on scholarship. There’s also a chance he attends his top academic choice and tries to play college soccer as a walk-on.

Given what Real has overcome so far, it would not be wise to doubt him.

BOYS’ SOCCER

2018-2019 STATE CHAMPS

5A: Lake Mary

4A: Auburndale

3A: Plantation American Heritage

2A: Orlando Lake Highland Prep

1A: Palmer Trinity

KEY DATES

Jan. 27-Feb. 8: District tournaments; Feb. 12: Regional quarterfinals; Feb. 15: Regional semifinals; Feb. 19: Regional finals; Feb. 22: State semifinals; Feb. 26-29: State finals in DeLand.

BREAKDOWN

▪ 7A: Varela, Cypress Bay and Columbus have all won at least one state title in recent years. This class is deep with Dade and Broward talent, including Western, Krop, Flanagan, Reagan, Coral Gables, Coral Springs and Coral Reef.

▪ 6A: St. Thomas Aquinas, a regional finalist last season, suffered heavy graduation losses, but the Raiders return three key seniors in forwards Spencer Mallion and Terrance Wilder and defender Victor Savu. Doral Academy, which went 20-1-1 last season but got upset in district play, should be strong. Fort Lauderdale, South Broward and Goleman are other teams to watch in this class.

▪ 5A: Belen, which won a state title in 2016 in 4A, appears to have a good draw in this class. Pembroke Pines Charter appears to be a solid Broward challenger.

▪ 4A: Plantation American Heritage is looking for its third straight state title, but the Patriots graduated 14 seniors, including nine starters. Cardinal Gibbons hopes to challenge after starting six freshmen and one sophomore last season on a team that reached the regional quarterfinals. Gibbons has since added five impactful transfers.

▪ 3A: Palmer Trinity, which has won two straight state titles, has a young team with just four seniors. Besides Palmer, LaSalle should be very strong and perhaps the team to beat in a very difficult class. Other challengers will include traditional powers Gulliver and Ransom Everglades as well as MAST, Edison, Westminster Christian, Miami Country Day and University School. U-School is led by three seniors: goalie Simon Mertnoff (13 shutouts last season), Sebastian Baredes (26 goals) and Sebastian Smith (32 assists).

▪ 2A: Hillel, which won a 1A state title in 2016, will now get a shot in this class.

This story was originally published November 11, 2019 at 5:10 PM.