Boccia UK is looking ahead to the World Championships in December with an extra confidence boost after a successful weekend at the World Cup in Povoa, Portugal.

On the last day of competition, Britain won a gold medal in the BC1/2 Team event. Will Hipwell, David Smith OBE and Claire Taggart topped their group going into the knock out stages. They beat Hong Kong in the semi-final on tiebreak before overcoming Brazil 4-2 in the final.

It’s something that David Smith OBE – three times Paralympic gold medallist – has described as a career highlight:

Smith said:

“We came into 2022 with the aim of moving up the rankings, slowly improving to the top four. We were under no illusions what it was going to take. Povoa was to a stepping stone and we were aiming for a top eight finish.

“We decided we needed to focus on our consistency, shot after shot, which would enable us to be brave with our shots and decisions. I’m so proud of what we have achieved. It’s easily one of my career highlights.

“I hope that with a successful Boccia UK team, it inspires more Team competition at National level. We have a proud history of Team and Pairs success – let’s keep adding to it.”

It was the second gold medal for Larne Paralympian Claire Taggart. The Northern Ireland talent had cemented her position as one of the world’s strongest boccia players, winning her first-ever World Cup earlier in the week.

Unbeaten all week, she stormed through the individual pool matches with a 5-1 win over Ana Correia of Portugal and then she saw off Slovakia’s Kristina Kudlacova 9-3. Meeting Vivien Nagy at the quarter final stages, she forced the Hungarian out of the competition with an incredible 13-0 victory before eliminating China’s Hiu Lam Yeung 6-1. She faced Correia again in the final, a repeat of Taggart’s opening match. It went to 2-2 but Taggart won on tie-break.

Her success in Povoa will surely see her rise in the world rankings from her current no.3 position.

She said:

“I’m beyond delighted to win my first ever World Cup and to do it here in Portugal with my Dad and all my teammates is amazing. I’m just so proud of all the work I’ve put in and I’m so grateful for all the support my teammates, my coach Glynn (Tromans) and support staff have given me.”

Meanwhile, Will Hipwell was also in a buoyant mood:

“It was a brilliant performance by the team. Prior to the tournament, we said we wanted to be brave with our decision-making. Throughout the tournament, we all took on some really brave shots. Going into the final, I’d been struggling to find the pace and consistency required for my lay up shots. But during the final, I found that consistency level which helped us achieve the victory.

“To win the final was the most fantastic and happy feeling I’ve ever felt on a boccia court!”

The achievement is set to help lift the British BC1/2 Team’s world ranking ahead of the World Championships in Brazil in December.

Smith also earned a podium position in the individual stages, winning bronze in the individuals after being forced to play with just five balls instead of six. Despite passing the equipment check prior to competition, one ball was ruled to have exceeded regular size:

“To win the semi-final with five balls would have been spectacular but Witsanu Huadpradit is far too good to let me do that. Hopefully the variations in the new balls will reduce and we can settle down.

“I still managed to secure a top three finish and I’m pretty happy with how I played, considering all the issues.”