Canadians unstoppable on day four of Boccia World Open in Poznan
Poznan, Poland (June 20, 2015) – Canadian BC4 players Marco Dispaltro (St Jérôme, QC), Caroline Vietnieks (Burnaby, BC) and Alison Levine (Montreal, QC) maintained their strong form on the fourth day of competition and second of individual play at the Boccia World Open in Poznan, Poland. World Number One Dispaltro took the win over Greece’s Chrysi Morfi Metzou with a score of 7-2, while Vietnieks conquered in her two matches against Slovenian player Matjaz Bartol and Slovakian Robert Durkovic with scores of 5-1 and 6-1, respectively. Finally, Levine, a member of CIBC Team Next, took a 3-2 victory over Brazilian Marcelo Santos.
Levine asserts, “I had a great morning, playing a Brazilian in my last pool game. After a good start with two points for myself in the first end, I had control of the game. In the fourth end, I nailed the jack on my first ball and he wasn’t able to touch it. He threw all his balls to try to recover with no success so I decided to withhold my own to win the match, and my pool! Elimination round starts tomorrow,” while Vietnieks says, “Being able to go into my match with a clear mind and full of confidence was such a good feeling. Being able to completely dominate my pool made all my hard work seem so worth it. Can’t wait to bring my all tomorrow.”
BC4 coach César Nicolai says, “I was confident that they were capable, but, at this level – you never know what can happen. To have all three of my athletes finish first in their pool against great opponents is a feat. If they play at their best, I know they call all qualify for the quarterfinals. We will cross our fingers, but right now, everything is going well”.
About boccia
Boccia is a Paralympic sport of precision and strategy similar to lawn bowling or curling, played by athletes with Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy and related disabilities. It is one of only two Paralympic sports that do not have an Olympic counterpart. Athletes compete in one of six sport classes based on their level and type of disability: BC1, BC2, BC3 BC4, BC5, and Open.
About Boccia Canada
Boccia Canada is the boccia delivery arm of the Canadian Cerebral Palsy Sports Association (CCPSA), the National Sport Organization for the Paralympic sport of boccia. Boccia Canada is focused on providing athletes and individuals of all ages and skill with the chance to play a unique Paralympic sport. CCPSA collaborates with partners to increase the participation of Canadians with cerebral palsy and related disabilities in sport and physical activity, while leading, developing and growing boccia from grassroots, to producing World and Paralympic Champions.