Your Paris 2024 Paralympic Games boccia preview
/The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games are about to begin. With eight days of boccia to look forward to, here’s a preview of the individual competition.
David Smith on his fifth Paralympic Games
It’s his fifth Paralympic Games and Britain’s best ever boccia player, David Smith OBE, goes into the individual competition – yet again – as world number one:
“I am at the top of the rankings and I’m reigning Paralympic champion but I’ve been beaten by Huadpradit and Syafa recently,” says Smith, who’s dyed his hair in the customary red and blue mohawk. “I feel as if I’m going in as the hunter rather than the hunted this time and I quite like that.
“I feel that I’ve peaked at the right time but it’s competitive sport and you never quite know what people are going to bring on the day. I don’t worry too much about winning these days. I just try and play as well as I can.”
But first, he faces pool matches and he is up against Daniel Perez from the Netherlands who seized Smith’s European title last year. Brazil’s Jose Carlos Chagas de Oliveira could also pose a formidable challenge, having won bronze at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
david smith obe became paralympic champion in bc1 individuals in rio and tokyo
Taggart and Haggo make history
The Paris Paralympic Games also sees the first-ever women’s only competition. And Claire Taggart has enjoyed a meteoric rise in the sport, becoming World Champion in 2022.
In her pool, the Northern Ireland ace will face Portugal’s Cristina Goncalves – a well-established player who has competed at five Paralympic Games and has won three medals. Taggart is relatively fresh from playing Ecuador’s Joselyn Leon who she beat in the final at the Sao Paulo World Cup in June.
Taggart said: “I’m delighted to be selected to compete at my third Paralympic Games in Paris. It’s a huge opportunity to compete in front of family and friends, as Paris is so close. I’m really excited as well as a bit nervous!”
Kayleigh Haggo of Scotland – who holds several world records in the sport of frame-running, is relatively new to boccia but her swift progress has impressed Boccia UK. She finds herself up against Jeong Soyeong of South Korea, a tough opponent currently ranked world number three, and Portugal’s Ana Correia who won silver at the European Para Championships last year:
“Ever since I attended London 2012 with my mum, I knew that I wanted to become a Paralympian. It’s been 13 years of hard work in the making but it’s been totally worth it and I’m looking forward to going to Paris and seeing what I can do,” says Kayleigh.
And adds, “I’m just looking forward to going there and experiencing the whole Paralympic Games and taking it all in and just the opportunity that it’ll give me. Then maybe in four years, I’ll hopefully have more chances of getting a medal. But you never know, I’m going to see what I can do when I get out there and just enjoy it.”
claire taggart is world no 1
Brits field two male BC3s
The BC3s – another hotly contested category – sees Will Arnott and Patrick Wilson in Pool A. Leading this pool is top seed and World Champion Daniel Michel of Australia.
Arnott, ranked seventh, demonstrated his talents when he won the qualifying event in Portugal back in March with pairs partner Sally Kidson:
“Preparation has gone really well for Paris. I’ve not long come back from a training camp in Poland. We got to train with the current Paralympic Champion and another couple of players that will be at the Games and that’s definitely helped my preparations a lot. I think I’m peaking at the right time.”
Meanwhile, Wilson received late call up through a bipartite slot, after excelling on court this season:
“I’m extremely happy and relieved to have been given a bipartite place for Paris 2024. I feel I deserved it given what I’ve achieved this year and also because I really feel I can go and do something special,” says Patrick who is based in Edinburgh.
patrick wilson earned a late call up following impressive season
Teenager Kidson in Pool C
Sally Kidson from Wiltshire makes her Paralympic debut in Paris, along with Haggo and Arnott. At just 19, she picked up her A-level results this month and is headed to university after the Games.
Winning gold in with Arnott at the pairs qualifying event in March, she was ensured a place on the Eurostar to Paris. A determined player who has beaten highly ranked players this season, Kidson finds herself up against Evelyn Oliveira. Ranked third in the world, the Brazilian won gold in the Pairs at Rio 2016. Jamieson Leeson from Australia and Sunhee Kang of South Korea, both very strong players, also feature in Pool C.
sally kidson is just 19 and makes her paralympic debut
McGuire makes comeback to compete in Paris
It will be a dream come true for Stephen McGuire when he arrives on court in Paris. It may be his fourth Paralympic Games, having made his debut at London 2012, but it’s been a rollercoaster couple of years for the boccia ace from Lanarkshire.
Sustaining a serious injury in 2022, breaking his knee and femur, he underwent major surgery and rehabilitation. But McGuire has shown huge determination to make a remarkable comeback, winning silver at the Montreal World Cup and gold at the Sao Paulo World Cup in recent months. This saw him soaring to the world number three spot in the rankings and secured him a bipartite slot in Paris:
“To secure one of the two remaining individual slots for Paris and so close to the Games is incredible. This cycle has been the toughest of my career. Battling injury and dropping out of the world's top ten meant I really had to fight back to secure a world number three spot to earn this selection.”
stephen mcguire comes back from injury to become world no 3
Head to Channel 4 to catch all the Paralympic Games action. Channel 4 will be broadcasting across two channels and Channel 4 Streaming, plus Channel 4 Sport’s YouTube channel, with up to 18 concurrent streams.
The individual competition draws to a close on 2 September with the Team and Pairs events starting the same day.
All the info on what’s happening when is right here so you don’t ever miss watching ParalympicsGB.
More information
Check out the BBC’s Guide to Boccia.
To follow our social channels, head to our Instagram and Facebook page.
Want to play?
We are on the lookout for our next generation of Paralympic boccia players. Find out if you might be eligible or email us. There are also links to other organisations if you’d like to join a club and get involved.
