Paralympian Wei Lun Hopes to Popularise Boccia

KUALA LUMPUR, April 21 (Bernama) -- Malaysia’s first boccia medallist in the Paralympics, Chew Wei Lun, hopes the sport will grow bigger nationally and globally.

The 28-year-old, who retired shortly after making history by clinching silver at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, hopes to share about the sport with others as he wants to see other Malaysian athletes surpass his achievement.

“I want to let the people know more about boccia because, if they have friends or family members with a disability like mine (cerebral palsy), they can also give the sport a try. Who knows, they may have a hidden talent in boccia.

“It is also quite hard to find players to represent Malaysia (like other countries). That’s also one of the reasons why I want to promote boccia,” he posted on the official website of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

In September 2021, Wei Lun bagged silver in the BC1 category, which features athletes with severe limitations in their movements, affecting their legs, arms and trunk, on his Paralympic debut.

According to the IPC, the Johor athlete, who started playing boccia - a game of strategy and accuracy - for fun at the age of 10, never thought he would represent the country at the Paralympics and make history as a medallist.

“In Malaysia, not many people know what boccia is. Even if you tell other Malaysians, they will ask what boccia is because they have never heard of it. I just went to Tokyo 2020 to do my job. I was the only one who qualified for Tokyo and my mission was to promote the sport,” he posted on the IPC.

According to IPC, boccia is  is played on a flat, smooth surface, where players must throw or roll coloured balls as close as possible to a white target ball, known as the “jack.” The player, pair or team with the most balls near the jack is the winner.

-- BERNAMA