World Boccia is pleased to announce that from the 28th of September until the 4th of October, the first ever World Boccia Sports Technical Training Camp, for Latin America and the Caribbean, will be held in Cali, Colombia.
The week long training workshop is organized as a joint initiative between World Boccia with regional support from the Colombian and Jamaican National Boccia Federations with funding provided by the International Paralympic Committee.
This is the first of its kind, in aid of supporting the development and growth of the sport and its athletes across Latin America and the Caribbean. With the Caribbean being the newest region to join World Boccia, this is for all Caribbean players and a majority of their coaches, their first time travelling to a Boccia event.
The countries participating in the course are El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Mexico, Panama, Uruguay, Colombia and Jamaica.
Peter Hornig-Dixon, the Jamaican Head Coach said: “This course has been in the making since last December where I had the idea that we should have an regional workshop to boost Boccia its development across Latin America and the Caribbean. This time placing athletes from the region in the focus of the [development] activity. As we are building on from development work undertaken in the Caribbean in 2023, this is a great step forward.”
In 2023 significant development work was undertaken in the Caribbean region of the Americas, this included a national coaching course administered by the Jamaica Boccia Association as well as a World Boccia Level 1 Coaching course for aspiring Boccia coaches from all over the Caribbean. In 2024 World Boccia trained both referees and classifiers in the Caribbean.
Peter continued: “The workshop is also all about the athletes and their development. A first of its kind, we want to spend a week developing skills together with our athletes, working as a synergistic unit, as this is what yields success on court!”
Hot off the heels from a very successful 2024 Summer Paralympic Games, where in the Boccia event, the Latin American and Caribbean nations of Argentina, Bermuda, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador and Peru participated. The workshop acts as a catalyst in order to increase and help qualify further Latin American and Caribbean Boccia nations at future Paralympic Games.
Camilo Ortega Arellano, the Colombian Head Coach added: “For the population with severe motor disabilities in Latin America and the Caribbean, the development of Boccia represents both a means of rehabilitation and a pathway for social transformation, fostering inclusion and giving visibility to a historically marginalized group. By sharing experiences and training strategies, we aim to improve the competitive level of our athletes, strengthening our position on the global Boccia stage. This workshop marks a significant step in developing Boccia across our region, enabling athletes to achieve their full potential.”
“We look forward to welcoming coaches and athletes from all over Latin America and the Caribbean to Cali, Colombia.”
