Meet the McCowans

Tokyo 2020 will be a family affair for the McCowans. Brothers Scott and Jamie will be joined on court at the Ariake Centre by their parents Gary and Linda who are both ramp assistants.

They managed to find some time between packing kitbags to catch up with us!

How does it feel to be going to Tokyo?

Gary: I didn’t think Scott and I would get to Tokyo. He has more health issues than the rest of the team and he hadn’t competed in some of the big events before lockdown. But in the Czech Republic, he won the singles and pairs and has become a very prominent player in the squad. But there has been really tough competition for spots in the BC3s so we didn’t expect to be selected.

Linda: This will be the first ever Games when we will all be on court together. Previously, the rules meant that Jamie and Scott (who have Duchennes Muscular Dystrophy) could only be on court with a player who has Cerebral Palsy. That’s changed now. I think too that we are the first family of four all going to a Paralympic Games so that’s pretty special.

It must have been a nervous wait to find out if you had made the team?

Linda: It was a relief that both the boys had been selected. But it has happened before – in London 2012, Scott went but Jamie didn’t. And then at the World Championships in 2018, Jamie was selected but Scott wasn’t.

Gary: It was surreal; I was in shock. We got the call first for Jamie. He was a bit cheeky and asked who else had been selected but Helen Nicholls, the Performance Director, said: “I can’t reveal that but can I speak to Scott?” I couldn’t really hear anything she said other than that he was selected. It was a blur and Scott was speechless.

It must be so exciting to be going to the Games as a family?

Linda: I just wish we’d been able to read a story like ours when our boys were first diagnosed (with Duchennes Muscular Dystrophy) in 1997. When we were first told, everything seemed so negative. All our dreams had been taken away in that moment, But we decided that we would do everything possible to give them a good life and boccia has done that. If someone had told me back in 1997 that we’d all be going to Tokyo for the Paralympics, I wouldn’t have believed it.

Gary: I remember that week when we found out and thinking, “what on earth are we going to do?” We felt totally helpless. But we’ve all been on some journey. We have been in every corner of the world with boccia. It is such an incredible sport. Scott can only move his head, his fingers and his toes. To think that he will be in Tokyo, competing at the very top of his sport….it’s amazing.

Gary with Scott

It's certainly been a strange Games cycle. How was lockdown for you?

Linda: For nine months, the boys played in the living room. Once restrictions eased, we were lucky enough to have sole use of the local church hall which was really safe.

But lockdown was difficult. We had no care for nine months. We had no face to face physiotherapy either so we had to learn how to do all of that and do it on a weekly or twice a week basis – as well as running the house and cooking and so on.

I heard it got quite competitive in lockdown?

Gary: We played a family championships in the living room. I am really bad at losing. I would be in a seriously bad mood if we lost! We all get really competitive!

What is the position of a ramp assistant? What does it involve?

Gary: On court, you are almost like a caddy. But we are not permitted to see what’s happening on court. We have to face the other way. The player is allowed to give you instructions but we’re not allowed to talk. Even if we think they have made a mistake, we have to go along with it and we are not allowed to say anything.

Linda: But the work doesn’t stop there. Off court, you need to provide care for the whole competition – it’s a 24 hour job. Sometimes, the boys might need help to turn over in the night but the buzz of getting back on court the following morning makes it all worthwhile.

Linda with Jamie

How did you decide the pairings?

Gary: So I pair up with Scott and Linda pairs up with Jamie but we never really made a conscious decision to do it like that. When Scott first started playing with the Scotland squad, you had to make your own ramps. I worked in a steelworks and I made Scott’s first three ramps. So I knew how they worked and if there was a problem, I’d be able to sort it.

Linda: Also, you and Scott click together really well as you’re both a bit quieter. Jamie and I are perhaps a bit more outgoing?

Tell us about the McCowan roar…

Linda: They both shout on court and if they’re not shouting, we know it’s not going well.

Gary: if you’re playing singles, we might be at different ends of the hall. But if things are in a tight spot and maybe not going so well, it gives us a real lift to hear Jamie shout – and vice versa.

What happens if they play against each other?

Linda: They shout even louder! We are kind of used to playing each other. I think it’s worse for people watching. But that’s what we are there to do and we have to get on with it.

Gary: Saying that, it’s great that we get to play Pairs. Scott and Jamie are so close and they know each other so well. It means that communication is really easy for them and they trust each other completely.

Boccia is easier than it looks isn’t it?

Gary: You walk into a competition and it might look easy but there is so much to it. It isn’t just a case of rolling the ball on the jack. You might want to leave a 30 or 20cm clearance to make your opponent’s next shot harder. It’s like a game of chess; you constantly need to be thinking two or three shots ahead. It’s mentally exhausting because you are analysing all the different scenarios of how the game could go.

Presumably packing for Tokyo isn’t just a case of packing a bag. What does it involve?

Linda: For a start, we have four lots of packing! On top of that, we have medical equipment such as hoists, ventilators and pressure relief air mattresses.

There are lists everywhere in my house. I have lists of lists – I’m the one who organises everything!

Gary: Once we land and get to the village and all our cases have arrived, we breathe a sigh of relief. It’s not just a case of being able to pick up medical equipment in Japan so we take a spare of everything.

What would you say to other parents who are considering becoming a ramp assistant?

Linda: Often, ramp assistants tend to be a family member. A player needs reliability for their whole care. You need the right people there.

Gary: It’s hard work though. You have to be so committed to do the thing right. You can’t be half-hearted. Anyone taking it on needs to throw everything into it and focus on it.

What do you love about boccia?

Linda: I love competing with my family in the most inclusive high level sport there is. Boccia has kept them so well mentally and physically and to make the Paralympic Games again as a family is something very special.

Gary: I don’t think folk realise what an incredible sport boccia is – it is the most inclusive sport on the planet. And we love it!