Levine and Ciobanu Wrap Up Individual Play, Focus on Pairs at Coimbra 2025
Iulian Ciobanu in the middle of his semi-final match
Coimbra, PT (November 13, 2025) – The individual competition at the Coimbra 2025 World Boccia Cup has been drawn to a close.
Alison Levine and Iulian Ciobanu both competed in their respective BC4 categories. Levine had some well-fought matches, winning two and losing two. Her two wins were decisive, 7-4 against Sara Aller of Spain and 6-1 against Anamaria Arambasic of Croatia. Her two losses were against the 4th– and 8th-ranked players in the world, Sophie Newnham (GB) and Anita Raguwaran (DE). Unfortunately, Levine did not move forward in to the semi-finals.
Ciobanu also had a strong showing in pool play competition. He won one match 5-4 against Vasile Agache of Spain and another match against Portuguese athlete Paulo Cardoso with a score of 5-1. His other two matches were hard-fought losses, one against Stephen McGuire of Great Britain, who is ranked number #1 in the world. However, his result meant that he landed second in his pool, and he advanced to the semi-finals. Ciobanu’s semi-final match was against Boris Nicolai (DE), who scored 6 points compared to the Canadian’s 4 points, three of which he secured in the last end. In the bronze medal match, Ciobanu once again faced McGuire of Great Britain, who unfortunately came out on top, resulting in the Canadian finishing 4th.
Levine reflected on the individual competition in Coimbra. “It was my best game against Sophie [Newnham] yet – I only lost by three; last time it was a lot more. I came into this competition quite fatigued, not going to lie. You’re not going to win a medal at every event. It makes me sad, but life goes on and we still have pairs. At least now I can rest a little, since the last few days have been intense. That’s the reality of this competition. I’m looking forward to moving on to pairs.”
Ciobanu also provided his own reflections. “I finished fourth in Coimbra this year; when I arrived I was in fifth, but I finished in fourth. I made it out of pool, ended up in the semi-final, lost that, and went onto the bronze medal match. In the match, I lost my energy quickly and I didn’t keep up the same pace. I think that’s because we have had three competitions in a row, which isn’t easy. This summer, I have faced Stephen McGuire, the Paralympic gold medalist, and a rivalry has been formed between us. Anyway, we move onto the doubles competition.”
The BC4 duo of Levine and Ciobanu now move onto the pairs competition in Coimbra.
The full schedule and results are available here; the livestream from the event is here, with a link for each court.
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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. We lead, develop and grow boccia from grassroots to producing World Champions, and we collaborate with partners to increase participation of Canadians with physical disabilities in sport.
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.
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