World Boccia Championships: Team GB secure silver in Rio

The BC1/2 Team yesterday (Tuesday) secured silver after a nail-biting final with South Korea.

The GB trio – David Smith OBE, Will Hipwell and Taggart - led for the first half of the match, overpowering the Koreans 3-0. But danger came in the fourth end when the opposition levelled to 4-4 and then took a two-point lead in the fifth.

A fantastic shot, right onto the GB jack, by Taggart, ensured Great Britain would win the final end but the Koreans successfully created a barrier to prevent the Brits scoring any further points.

Earlier in the day, the team cruised through the semi-final with Argentina, winning 10-1.

It’s the first time that Great Britain has appeared in three World Championships finals. Claire Taggart made history by becoming the first female to win the BC2 women’s World Championship title since the male and female individual events have been separated.

She said: “I’m delighted to be coming home as World Champion. I didn’t expect it at all. It’s been an amazing championships. And to add a second medal in the Team is incredible. I’m so proud of David, Will and Sarah and Tom, our coaches.

“Paris 2024 is under two years away now and it’s exciting going into it as World Champion but it’s not time to get complacent or look beyond next year. We’ll focus on the events coming round including the Europeans and aiming to qualify for Paralympics with the Team. Paris looks great and I can’t wait to fight the journey to get there.”