Best of British at UK Championships

The best of British boccia will gather this weekend (16-17 November) for the UK Championships at sportscotland’s national training centre in Inverclyde.

For our Paralympians, it is the first time competing since they graced the courts of Paris 2024. Gold medallist and world number one Stephen McGuire, from Hamilton, is excited to compete on home soil:

“The UK Championships is the showcase event in our domestic calendar. I’m super excited to be competing, especially in Scotland.”

stephen back competing after winning gold in paris

“It’s always great to see the development of athletes coming through to challenge us athletes on the World Class Programme. Last year’s UK Championships saw all Talent Transition Squad athletes reach the podium. This demonstrates excellent depth within the UK and we will all need to perform well to reach the podium once again.”

Hosted by Scottish Disability Sport, Scotland’s Sports Minister Maree Todd is attending and is set for a masterclass in the sport from McGuire.

One of McGuire’s biggest challengers this weekend is Louis Saunders. Recently graduated, the player from Bognor Regis said:

“I’m excited to be competing as I think we’re seeing a really bright time for BC4 boccia in the UK right now. Stephen’s just come back from Paris with his gold medal, we’ve got Sophie Newnham flying up the world rankings, Tyler’s had a strong first international season as part of the Talent Transition Squad and I’m still in the top 20 in the world as an individual so I’m looking forward to an amazing competition.

“We’ve also got other athletes coming through the performance pathway, across all classifications, and it’s always good to see all four home nations represented.”

It is the first event of the 2028 Paralympic cycle with all eyes now looking ahead to LA. Saunders added:

“It’s a brilliant opportunity for people to put down a marker, show where they’re at, and their ambitions as we now look ahead to LA. Excited to see how everyone’s doing and see what the future holds for British boccia.”

louis says bc4 boccia in great place

Meanwhile, Kayleigh Brown (nee Haggo) – who recently just got married to sports assistant Kevin, also returns to the court:

“It’s been really busy since Paris – we got married, we’ve been on honeymoon and we have moved house – so I haven’t been able to train much but I’m really looking forward to this weekend. It’s always a great competition which brings the four nations together and gives me the opportunity to compete for Scotland. It’s brilliant to see a high number of entries and I’m sure it’ll be fun.”

BC1:

·       Darryl Pye

·       David Smith OBE

·       Fay Hart

·       Michael Halfpenny

·       Rachel Bailey

·       Rhys Sansom

·       Richard Armstrong 

BC2:

·       Alex Medley

·       James Clowes

·       Jason Rolph

·       Jasper MacCall

·       Kayleigh Brown

·       Luke Walsh

·       Reshad Saraj

·       Scott Cromie

·       Sian Jones

·       Tomas Martin

·       Will Hipwell

BC3:

·       Ce Turk

·       Daniel Elliot

·       Georgina Moore

·       Lee Crooker

·       Mark Roderick

·       Patrick Wilson

·       Raf Young

·       Robyn McBride

·       Sally Kidson

·       Will Arnott

BC4:

·       Harrison Smith

·       Ioan Williams

·       Jayne Milligan

·       Lewis Crawford

·       Louis Saunders

·       Paul McIntyre

·       Penny Froude

·       Scott McIntyre

·       Sophie Newnham

·       Stephen McGuire

·       Tyler McLelland