Ottawa, ON (April 29, 2024) – Boccia is a game of strategy, precision, and skill. Athletes put all of that to the test in Montréal, Québec this past weekend for the annual Défi Sportif AlterGo National Boccia Open. The competition really showcased the strategic mindset of the athletes.

Boccia Canada’s High-Performance Director, Mario Delisle was impressed, explaining “It’s always fun observing upcoming talent. Of course, it’s great to see familiar faces performing, as they should, while some newcomers challenging them at this event too.” 

In the Open class, Ariane Soulard (Montréal, QC) won her first National Open gold medal. Since breezily wheeling into the sport three years ago, after having participated mostly in powerchair soccer, Soulard has kept exceeding expectations, winning silver in 2023 before taking gold this year. “I was proud and surprised by the win” said Soulard. “I was surprised by the way I threw the balls at this competition. My strategy was to use specific types of balls at different times.” Nancie Caldwell (Montréal, QC) won silver, while Myriam Morin (Montréal, QC) placed third.

A familiar face topped the podium in the BC4/BC5 class. Marc-Antoine Goupil (Montréal, QC) went undefeated to bring home another gold. “It’s been an honour to compete here amongst this class of high-performance athletes” said Goupil. “It was fun to play at this kind of level. I felt in good shape to compete and my strategy was throwing the ball long.”

Another athlete who went undefeated was BC3’s Esraa Sbeiti (Montréal, QC) who improved on her 2022 silver medal, this time winning gold against a deep field. Behind Sbeiti, was Alexandre Raymond (Sorel-Tracy, QC) in second place and Josh Gautier (Niagara Falls, ON), who nabbed bronze in a nail-biting tiebreaker against fellow Ontarian Carter Plumb (Brampton, ON).

Former national team member and seasoned veteran Hanif Mawji (Burnaby, BC), won gold in the BC1 division. His performance partner and dad, Hussein Mawji was happy to see his son still “in the mix”: “He’s very proud of his winnings. Hanif, once again, proved himself in the face of adversity.” Hanif Mawji went on to say that “I owe this performance to my determination to always to excel in boccia at whatever level I’m playing.” Mawji is still eager to push the envelope, three years after leaving international competition. Up and comer Kyle Scott (Hamilton, ON) came in second and Chris Halpen (Victoria, BC) placed third.

The BC2 class had the most participants this year. The BC2 final was a battle of “the Oliviers”, with Olivier Roy (Québec City, QC) winning 8-2 against Olivier Dussault (Québec City, QC). Former National Espoir teammates, the Oliviers, both hail from Québec City and train together with the Lions Boccia club. Roy said, “I owe my performance to the feedback and suggestions of my coaches at this competition. It’s a great indicator of what’s to come. Of course, playing Olivier [Dussault] wasn’t easy and I consider him like a brother to me, but I’m happy to be on the podium with him.” Christopher Labelle (Blainville, QC) took third, winning against Ontario’s Dominic Gomez.

Find all results from the competition here.

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About Boccia Canada

Boccia Canada is the boccia delivery arm of the Canadian Cerebral Palsy Sports Association (CCPSA), the National Sport Organization for the Paralympic sport of boccia. Boccia Canada is focused on providing athletes and individuals of all ages and skill with the chance to play a unique Paralympic sport. CCPSA leads, develops and grows boccia from grassroots to producing World Champions, and we collaborate with partners to increase participation of Canadians with physical disabilities in sport.

About boccia

Boccia is a Paralympic sport of precision and strategy similar to lawn bowling or curling, played by athletes with Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy, and related disabilities. It is one of only two Paralympic sports that do not have an Olympic counterpart. Athletes compete in one of six sport classes based on their level and type of disability: BC1, BC2, BC3, BC4, BC5, and Open. For more information on boccia, visit www.bocciacanada.ca.

Media Contact:

Holly Janna
Email: hjanna@bocciacanada.ca
Phone Number: (514) 944-519