Matt Klotz is making Big Brother history as the show’s first hearing-impaired contestant. He is also a decorated Deaflympics swimmer, having won 17 medals in three appearances at the games.
Klotz made his Deaflympics debut in 2013, winning two gold medals and one bronze medal in swimming.
He returned to compete in 2017, where he added three more gold medals and two silver medals to his collection. In 2022, Klotz won his most medals in a single year, taking home three gold medals, two silver medals, and four bronze medals.
Klotz’s deafness has not prevented him from achieving success in swimming or Big Brother. He is a strong competitor and a strategic player, and he is sure to make waves on the show.
Is Matt Klotz completely Deaf?
Matt, who is not from a deaf family, was born deaf. His parents did not know he was deaf until he was two years old, because universal hearing screening was not yet done on newborns. Matt could read lips early on, but it wasn’t until he received hearing aids that he heard his parents’ voices for the first time.
In an interview with DeafPeople.com, Matt said, “I was just born this way. It was before universal hearing screening was done on newborns, so my parents did not know I was deaf until I was two.” He noted that he could “read lips early on,” but it wasn’t until he received hearing aids that he heard his parents’ voices for the first time.
Matt’s experience of being born deaf to hearing parents is not uncommon. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, about 2 to 3 out of every 1,000 children in the United States are born with a detectable level of hearing loss in one or both ears. More than 90 percent of deaf children are born to hearing parents.
Despite the challenges of being deaf in a hearing world, Matt has said that he is grateful for his deafness. He has said that it has made him more creative and resourceful and that it has given him a unique perspective on the world.