Boccia’s elite head to Montreal for World Open

With the 2014 World Championships in Beijing, China, taking place in September, competitors will be looking to hit the ground running and gain valuable momentum by giving a good performance in Montreal.

Montreal is set to welcome boccia’s elite for the first major international tournament of 2014

The 2014 BISFed World Open in Montreal, Canada, will see 76 athletes from 12 countries compete in the first major international tournament of the year beginning on Thursday (1 May).

With the 2014 World Championships in Beijing, China, taking place in September, competitors will be looking to hit the ground running and gain valuable momentum by giving a good performance in Montreal.

The BC1 event will see world No. 1 David Smith of Great Britain look to continue his rich form with another first-place podium finish, but he will face stern competition from Brazil’s Jose Carlos Chagas, who won gold at the 2013 Americas Championship in Kansas, USA.

It could be another British-Brazilian battle for gold in the BC2 event as Brazil’s Maciel Santos and Great Britain’s Nigel Murray are the two strongest athletes on paper. However, Slovakia’s Robert Mezik could also pose a threat having performed strongly throughout 2013.

Belgium will look to dominate the BC3 event with Kirsten de Laender and Pieter Cilissen taking part, but Canada’s own Paul Gauthier will be hoping to take advantage of a home crowd and claim a medal.

In the BC4 event, hometown hero Marco Dispaltro of Canada can become the top-ranked player in the world if he wins gold, although Brazil’s two-time Paralympic champion Dirceu Jose Pinto will be looking to ruin Dispaltro’s homecoming.

Among the countries sending their boccia stars to Montreal are Australia, Argentina, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Faroe Islands, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Russia, Singapore and Slovakia.