(Ottawa, October, 12 2006) The Canadian BC1/BC2 team won both its games on the first day of team competition at the 2006 Boccia World Championships, being held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The BC4 pair and BC3 pair each had a win and a loss.
The Canadian BC1/BC2 team is comprised of Tammy McLoed, Adam Dukovich and David Van Hoek, of London, ON, Hanif Mawji of Burnaby, BC and Nathan Moss of Victoria, BC. In their first game, Canada defeated Brazil 9-3 and won 9-3 against Croatia in their second game. “We played very well today”, said Van Hoek. We are very close and we are there for each other. Tomorrow we will have a tough game but we will see what happens.” Canada will play Spain, ranked second in the world, tomorrow.
Jonathan Poulin of Montreal, QC and Josh Vander Vies of London, ON turned heads today, in the BC4 Category. They first won easily, 13-0 against Argentina. In their last game of the day, they lost 4-3 against Portugal after leading 3-1 before the last end. “Jonathan and Josh had a very good day and are in a good position in their pool even with their heart-breaking loss against Portugal”, said National Team Head Coach Mario Delisle. “Both athletes communicated very well to maximize their strategies and surprise their opponents. It is the first time that the Canadians kept up with the Portuguese who have been the best team in the world for many years”.
The BC3 Canadian pair (two players are on the court at the same time) lost its first game 3-1 against Greece but rebounded well with a 10-0 victory against Hong Kong. Paul Gauthier, Alison Kabush and Monica Martino all from the greater Vancouver are one of the favorite teams in this class. Kabush and Gauthier won a bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Paralympic Games.
The finals will be played on Sunday.
Boccia is a Paralympic sport open to athletes with cerebral palsy, traumatic brain injury, stroke or similar non-progressive conditions. All competitors compete in wheelchairs and some are permitted to use assistive devices (usually a ramp or chute to aid in throwing the ball). Only athletes with a severe disability are eligible to compete in boccia.
The Canadian Cerebral Palsy Sports Association (CCPSA) is an athlete focused national organization administering and governing sport opportunities targeted to athletes with CP and related disabilities. CCPSA and its provincial partners cooperate as a proactive force to facilitate the development of equitable and fair sporting opportunities for our athletes.
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For more information
Dominique Tremblay
CCPSA
(613) 748-1430
(819) 360-6333
Dominique@ccpsa.ca
