Boccia: A guide - The Straits Times

Boccia: A guide
Boccia is a precision ball sport similar to lawn bowls.
Originally designed for people with cerebral palsy,
the sport is now also played by those with
disabilities affecting their motor skills.
THE GAME
• Four rounds in individual and pair matches, and six
rounds in team matches.
• Matches last from 30 minutes to an hour.
• Each player is given six blue or red balls.
The match starts when a player throws a white target
ball, the ‘jack’, into play over the ‘V’ line.
• The aim is to get your game balls closer to the jack
than your opponent.
• Players throw their game balls from a distance of
two to 10 metres, depending on how far the jack is.
• The balls closest to the jack after each round are
awarded one point.
• Players who are unable to throw independently
are provided with assistive devices like a ramp to
launch the ball.
Throwing boxes
Each 1x2.5m
THE BALL
Made of
leather and
weighs
about 275g.
It is about
the size of
an orange.
Assistants
Team Singapore player
Muhammad Shahrizan Mohd Shah.
Player
Player
Jack
Referee
‘V’ line
THE COURT
Cross
is divided into six
12.5m
rectangular boxes which
the athletes must stay within
during the match.
• The cross marks the position where
the jack must be placed in the event of a tie
break or if the jack is thrown out of bounds.
Court
• The throwing area
You always need to be one step ahead
of the opponent. For example, if my
opponent is left-handed, I would move to
block his angle of throws from the left.
6m
NEO KAH WHYE.
Team Singapore player
ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN ST GRAPHICS