As the Paris Paralympic Games grace our screens, we're set to be treated to a smorgasbord of top sports. The athleticism and dedication on the show will be nothing short of phenomenal — not least the sport of boccia (pronounced "botch-ah").
Boccia has been in the Paralympics since 1984 and is played at this year's event. Although New Zealand doesn't have a boccia team on French soil, you can bet that Kiwis' sights are firmly set on the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
Seven Sharp's Rachel Parkin went for a crash course in boccia.
Boccia — it sounds a bit like a heist gone wrong. But this reporter was the only one "botching" at Christchurch's Bishopdale YMCA on this particular day.
As I meandered courtside, ready for my crash course in boccia, the top athletes I was there to watch were in poker-faced action, ready to take me down.
Boccia is a game built on extreme skill, strategy and precision.
Jeremy Morriss is a retired Paralympian, and Lilian Exton is a weapon on wheels.
I was the rookie, and I was in trouble.
"You're a sniper!" I told Exton after she propelled her boccia ball at pace to tuck in perfectly alongside the white jack.
"Thank you," she said. "It seems to be going my way today."
I got the feeling that it happened a lot.
As she threw her blue balls against Alisha Mill's reds, Exton was a force.
Blue ball after blue ball retrieved from her muffin tray holder found its mark. Exton's confession that she was fresh off victory at the North Island regionals was unsurprising.
She was good.
But for her, the game wasn't just a great challenge; it was community.
"It's definitely a fun sport and a great way to meet new people," she said.
What is boccia?
Derived from the Italian word meaning 'to bowl' — the game is best described as bowls-meets-pétanque for disabled athletes.
Like all para-sports, boccia athletes are graded based on functionality, and how they "propel" the ball is up to them.
Those who can't throw use a ramp. Others, their feet. And don't for a second think that detracts from precision.
You can check out the Paralympic action in Paris for the proof.
For Craig Gadsby, boccia was the perfect sport to tackle when back surgery put a stop to wheelchair rugby.
"You know, something a little less physical," he said. "And it's a good sort of tactical sport. You can get in there and compete."
"I hear it gets a bit feisty?" I asked.
"It can do," he said, grinning. "But off the court, we're all mates."
That seemed to be the common thread — a great game with a great community.
But as I took a seat in the boccia box, preparing to face 15-year-old Connor Duncan-Caley, though, I feared the worst.
Would this be a crash course in humility? My first throw showed promise.
"Oooh," a spectator said. "She's good."
The next shot, she was not.
In his sweet, unassuming way, Duncan-Caley wiped the floor with me — despite Paralympian Jeremy Morriss' best efforts as a coach.
"I think you're better at under-arm," Morriss told me before I threw a whopper well beyond the jack.
Ah, well. It's not about winning, right?
The real winner on the day was clear to see. Boccia is a great, competitive, highly skilled game for everyone.
The only way is up for me.
Watch the Paralympics live on TVNZ+ and TVNZ1 from August 29-September 9.
SHARE ME