Boccia UK looks ahead to Paris 2024

British boccia stars are now looking ahead to Paris 2024 as their run in Tokyo today comes to a close.

The tournament saw Great Britain’s David Smith MBE win individual gold, while Scott McCowan reached the bronze medal play-off.

Boccia UK’s Performance Director Helen Nicholls said there is a lot to be proud of:

“To return home with a gold is superb but we also go home with so much more knowledge and insight that we’ll take into our preparations for Paris 2024. Three of our squad members here were first-time Paralympians so, for them, to even just experience playing at this level and being part of one the biggest multi-sport competitions on the planet is invaluable.”

Smith was certainly in a positive mindset after defeating Argentina 6-4 on their final day of pool matches. But the Team, also featuring Claire Taggart and Will Hipwell, was not able to overcome RPC – the Russian Paralympic Committee team - for a place in the semi-final and were sent out 3-10:

Claire Taggart in action in Tokyo. Credit: imagecomms

“RPC were a bit strong for us today but we move onto the next Paralympic cycle,” said Smith. “We’re looking forward to Paris; we know we’ve got a lot to do but we feel like we’re making massive progress. We were outside the top 13 less than two years ago and now we are in top eight and gradually improving all the time.”

The day started well in the BC4 Pairs too as Stephen McGuire, Louis Saunders and Evie Edwards triumphed 5-2 over long-term rivals, Canada. A place in the semi-finals came down to the last head-to-head pool match with Portugal which Britain lost 1-3:

“I’m really disappointed,” said McGuire. “There’s nothing I would have loved more than to bring home a medal for ParalympicsGB. It’s been my dream but it’s been a fantastic tournament. The third end was where the game turned around so credit to Portugal.”

Stephen McGuire and Louis Saunders in action today

Meanwhile, brothers Scott and Jamie McCowan, together with Beth Moulam, finished on a high with a 7-0 drubbing over France in the BC3 Pairs. While they were unable to progress to the semi-final, it marked the first-ever Paralympic Games win for Moulam.

Jamie McCowan said: “It’s such a relief to get the win to be honest. This week’s been one of the toughest of my career. We came out fighting and, for the three of us to produce that, it reminded us how good we actually are. I’d say for Beth as well, coming into her first Paralympic Games, she was simply brilliant in that game.”

Earlier in the day, Thailand claimed a 7-3 win over the BC4s.

Beth Moulam prepares her shot with ramp assistant Christie Hutchings. Credit imagecomms