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7day Fazza Dubai 2021 World Boccia Asia-Oceania Regional Championship kicked off on Sunday in an individual billiards game. The 2020 Tokyo Paralympic stars from the region will take center stage at the Shabab Al Ahli Club here.
This event is of great significance in several respects-the medal winners will directly qualify for the World Boccia Championships scheduled to be held in Rio de Janeiro in August 2022. This is the first time a separate international competition has been held for men and women.
This year’s World Championships will compete for 11 gold medals. This week, 70 players from 9 countries will compete for the championship.
The host United Arab Emirates will send nine players to the tournament, including two women.
In the men’s BC2 billiards game, Paralympic stars including Thailand’s four-time Paralympic champion Watcharaphon Vongsa (Group A) and compatriot Worawut Saengampa (Group B) achieved an easy victory in the first game. Tokyo 2020 Paralympic gold medalist Japanese star Hidetaka Sugimura also won (pool C).
Sugimura is very happy to come to Dubai and hopes to continue his victory. “I want to continue to win and continue to challenge myself,” Sugimura said, looking forward to a productive week.
“Of course, my goal is the gold medal here,” the 39-year-old added.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympic medalist Zheng Haoyuan led a 10-member South Korean team to participate in the 2021 Dubai Olympics and won 19-0 in the first men’s BC3 billiards game.
Among other top players, Hong Kong’s Yuk Wing Leung, Thailand’s Pornchok Larpyen and Japan’s Kazuki Takahashi also won in the men’s BC4 and BC3 billiards games.
The South Korean team leader emphasized the importance of the World Championships because of the new rules of separating men and women in world bocce ball, adding that his players reacted differently. “This is a big change, and we hope to get more female players before Paris in 2024.
“Due to the warm weather, the team likes to come to Dubai, because it provides opportunities for muscle relaxation and warm-up in the coming year.”
On the women’s side, Japan’s 2016 Rio Paralympic silver medalist Yuriko Fujii led the BC1 billiards game.
The second and third rounds of billiards in each category will be played on Monday, and the knockout round will start on Tuesday.
The final will be held on Friday.
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