President of the Northland Boccia Association Scott Burdett gave the Northern Advocate a simple guide to boccia and how to play it.
There are six grades in New Zealand: Kiwi, Open, BC1, BC2, BC3 and BC4 with different levels of capability.
In 1984 it became a Paralympic sport for grades BC1-BC4, and
in 2008 was being practiced in more than 50 countries.
Boccia can be played by individuals, pairs, or teams of three and all events are mixed gender.
Individual competition consists of four ends and six balls per player per end, while paired competition is four ends and six balls per pair per end (three per player). The aim of the game is to throw leather balls coloured red or blue as close as possible to a white target ball, or jack.
Players are awarded points if they are closest to the jack. For example, if the team using red balls has two balls closest to the jack, they get two points.
The player/team who gets the most points wins.
