Hwaseong Special City Successfully Hosts 3rd National Boccia Championship, Uniting People with and without Disabilities

Hwaseong Special City (Mayor Jung Myeong-geun) successfully held the '3rd Hwaseong Special City Mayor's Cup National Boccia Championship' on the 20th at the gymnasium on the second floor of the Hwaseong Bandabi Sports Center.

Hosted by the Hwaseong City Disabled Athletes Association and organized by the Hwaseong City Disabled Boccia Federation, the championship drew approximately 200 participants including athletes, officials, and guardians from across the nation, who competed and strengthened unity.

Boccia is an official Paralympic sport in which athletes throw or roll balls to send them as close as possible to the target ball. Winners are determined by summing the scores of balls closest to the target ball.

The championship was divided into team competition in the Uleul 3-person category (integrated group of people with and without disabilities) and BC3 individual competition. Particularly in the Uleul 3-person match where one person without disabilities could compete together, athletes encouraged one another and coordinated beyond disability, gender, and age, adding deeper meaning to integrated sports.

Jo Seung-moon, Hwaseong Special City's Second Vice Mayor, who visited the championship venue on the day, stated, "I hope this championship becomes a gathering place for harmony where athletes coordinate with one another, encourage each other, and share the joy of sports beyond winning and losing." He added, "We will carefully develop a living sports environment to expand opportunities for people with and without disabilities to naturally blend through sports and understand one another."