New sport for the physically challenged being introduced

The imminent introduction of Boccia to St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), has been hailed as a sport for all, by Rudi Daniel, President of the National Paralympic Committee of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Daniel’s organization is spearheading the introduction of Boccia, which is similar to Bocce, that is already being played here.

He told SEARCHLIGHT, “It is a fantastic game that can be played by everyone… It is a game of tactics and smarts”.

Daniel noted that at present, they are working with the National Society for Persons with DisAbilities (NSPD), as they look forward to having St Vincent and the Grenadines represented at the 2028 Paralympic Games in Los Angeles, USA.

“We are hoping that we can enter some in 2028 in Los Angeles, therefore we are working with trying to get a wheel chair athlete ready… Also, we are looking at anyone who has cerebral palsy to learn the sport”, Daniel expounded.

He said the Boccia kits are expensive hence, they are slowly introducing the sport here in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

“The kits are expensive and at this time we only have one, and as time goes by, we hope to get more, so that the sport can spread.”

Boccia is a precision ball sport. The name is derived from the Latin word for boss– bottia.

Boccia became a Paralympic sport in 1984. It can be played by individuals, pairs, or teams consisting of three players.

The aim of the game is for players to throw the leather balls, which are coloured red or blue as close as they can to a white target ball, or jack.

The jack is thrown first, then the first two regular balls are played, after which the side furthest away from the jack goes next in an attempt to either get closer to the jack or knock the opposition’s ball out of the way.

Scoring is done by measuring the distance from the jack to the balls. The player, or the team with the highest score is declared the winner by the referee.