ANOTHER live event is coming up and it feels pretty amazing to be able to say that, after the solitude we have all had to endure in the past 18 months.
For this event, Scottish Women in Sport will partner with the wonderful Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) to highlight its Girls in Boccia campaign.
October 25-31 has been named Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week and our partnership is all about raising awareness of the opportunities available for young women and girls who may feel marginalised by a disability, to help them realise there is a space there for them to enjoy sport and to take it to Olympic level, should they feel inclined.
At this point you might be asking: "What is boccia?" It’s a target sport played indoors on a court and is ideal for people with a disability.
It’s popular with wheelchair users and individuals with cerebral palsy, learning disabilities and acquired age-related disability. You can learn more by going on to the website at boccia.scottishdisabilitysport.com/about
It’s a great sport and while it’s a Paralympic sport for players with a severe physical disability, it can also be played by anyone who wishes to give it a go.
You can play it as a family or with a group of friends; in fact, it’s a sport that can suit all the family – as Scotland’s “boccia family”, the McCowans, can testify. Jamie and Scott have muscular dystrophy and are wheelchair users. They were introduced to the game more than 15 years ago through a come-and-try event. They and their parents fell in love with the incredible sport.
Linda became younger son Jamie’s assistant when he could still throw a ball and stepped into the role of a ramp assistant for him for the Games in Tokyo earlier this year.
Scotland has a long tradition of boccia and has achieved Paralympian and international medal success.
However, there is a lack of women and girls and the push is on for Paris 2024, so that seems a great reason to work with SDS and raise awareness on social media through the week – and there’s a come-and-try event on Saturday, October 30, in Edinburgh.
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