British boccia stars eye World Cup glory in Seoul tune-up for 2026

 British boccia stars compete in Korea this week and Paralympic gold medallist Stephen McGuire is using it as essential preparation for next year’s World Championships.

The Seoul World Cup kicks off Wednesday 3 September – and as it’s taking place in the same venue as the World Championships next year, it’s a crucial rehearsal.

stephen mcguire and sophie newnham team up for bc4 pairs

Stephen McGuire MBE and David Smith OBE – who were both crowned individual European Championships this summer – will be joined by Sophie Newnham, all competing individually before McGuire and Newnham team up for the BC4 Pairs event.

McGuire from Hamilton in Scotland said:

“My primary focus is on the Pairs. We qualified for our spot at the European Championships by winning gold in July so now our challenge is to improve our world ranking and to gain exposure to the best Pairs internationally. This will be the first time since last year that Sophie and I would have been at the same competition as the Paralympic Games medallists from Paris so it’s an opportunity to gauge where we are. We can work out any gaps in our performance and work on those through the winter months in preparation for the world championships next year.”

Newnham is also looking forward to the challenge ahead:

“Obviously, at every World Cup, I need to focus on my world ranking which will help my seeding for the World Championships next year but South Korea will be the first time I’m exposed to many of the really competitive Asian nations. Although my previous results this season show I’m well set up for this competition, this one is massively about playing new opponents, learning from their style and seeing how I compare to their standards so I’m very excited to be up against new competitors.”

David Smith will be aiming to cement his position at the top of the BC1 category. Following the Europeans, he said:

boccia’s david smith obe back on top after winning european gold

“The new chair felt good, the seat worked well and the new balls were fine. There’s still stuff to work on but it’s a good starting point and it shows I’m heading in the right direction.”