14.04.04 Boccia's Back-to-Back Gold Challenge

Nigel Murray's (Great Britain) bid to become the first boccia player to win successive Paralympic gold medals is underway.

Boccia's world Nº1 from Leamington (England) has been named in the four-man GB boccia squad for the Paralympic Games in Athens following an impressive run of form.

Murray's selection was a foregone conclusion following his retention of the English national title at the British Championships for the fourth consecutive time last month. His form will make him favourite to retain gold in the individual event and also put the GB squad in contention to win the team competition.

Murray, 39, believes victory in both would surpass his achievement in Sydney when he won as an unseeded player.

He said: "We've got a very good chance to win two golds and winning both events would mean even more than it did for me to win in Sydney.
"On a personal level, winning the individual event would surpass my achievement of four years ago because no one has ever won it twice before.
"But the standard will be much higher because the qualification process is done over a four-year cycle so we know only the top countries will be in Athens.
"It means there will be a very fine line between winning and losing. It's all down to whoever hits form in the six days of the competition.
"Britain is one of three or four countries who are strong enough to win team gold. We should get through the group and with seeding and a bit of luck we could go all the way."

Read the full article courtesy of 'Leamington Spa Today'

Sport : Boccia

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