“As Dominic’s coach, I am incredibly proud of his recent gold medal win in Boccia. Dominic has shown an unwavering dedication to the sport and his hard work has paid off in a big way. Watching him grow and develop as an athlete has been amazing and I am so excited to see what he will achieve next. Congratulations, Dominic!”, said Logan White, Head Coach, Durham Boccia Busters.
2022 Team Ontario member Giovanni De Sero (Guelph, ON) also took home the gold, winning every game in his class. In addition to his first place finish, De Sero was awarded the Cheryl-Anne Hewitt Spirit of the Games award. This award began in 2010 and is given to the athlete that best exemplifies the spirit of the game. The officials saw his remarkable sportsmanship and knew he was the perfect recipient for 2023: “The next generation of boccia athletes are starting to show the province what is in store for the next couple years. It was great to see new and exciting faces competing at this level. I was very surprised to be awarded my fourth Spirit of the Games award this past month in Waterloo. My father always told me to be humble in all aspects of my life. And I am sure he was looking down on me that day and giving me a big thumbs up.”
In the BC3 class, there was fierce competition for the podium, with Joshua Gautier (St. Catharines, ON) taking home the gold. Gautier attributed some of the success to additional practice time provided to all the athletes the day before the competition started: “At this year’s provincial tournament, I appreciated the time provided to test the floors the night before the competition. This is especially important for ramp play and it helped me to arrive confident and ready to compete! It was my goal to perform well in this tournament and use it as preparation for the upcoming Boccia Blast!”. More information on Boccia Blast 2023 can be found here.
Other notable achievements came from the Senior Open classification, with Gus Sacrey (Belleville, ON) taking home his first provincial gold medal. Sacrey comes from the newly founded Quinte Boccia Club, who are always accepting new members. In the Ontario Junior Boccia Championships, Addi Sharma (Brampton, ON) won gold at his first competition ever! Sharma trains with Cruisers Sports Club boccia program, who joined in celebrating his victory.
OCPSA’s Director of Boccia, Adam Dukovich, reflected on the event: “I was amazed at the quality of play from our athletes at the Ontario Boccia Championships this year. I see great things happening in the next 5 years in Ontario. Our staff did a fantastic job raising the standards of the tournament and I am looking forward to see what they do next year.”
The Ontario Boccia Championships are hosted annually in different communities across Ontario, providing an opportunity for athletes to compete against the best in the province. To qualify for these provincial championships, athletes must first compete in the Ontario Regional Boccia Series.
Results
BC1
Gold: Lance Cryderman (Sudbury, ON)
Silver: Kyle Scott (Hamilton, ON)
BC2
Gold: Dominic Gomez (Whitby, ON)
Silver: Maggie Julien (Sudbury, ON)
Bronze: Jim Davis (Thorald, ON)
BC3
Gold: Joshua Gautier (St. Catharines, ON)
Silver: Cody Dionne (Whitby, ON)
Bronze: Bryce Desrochers (Ottawa, ON)
BC5
Gold: Giovanni De Sero (Guelph, ON)
Silver: Julian Caverley (Therold, ON)
Bronze: Sydney Weaver (Guelph, ON)
Senior Open
Gold: Gus Sacrey (Belleville, ON)
Silver: Gordon Letke (Whitby, ON)
Bronze: Hunter Cross (Whitby, ON)
Ontario Junior Boccia Championships
Gold: Addi Sharma (Brampton, ON)
Silver: Aurora Whalen (Belleville, ON)
Bronze: Spencer Poeluev (Waterloo, ON)
The Ontario Cerebral Palsy Sports Association (OCPSA) was founded in 1981 as a registered charitable organization for the delivery of sport to persons with cerebral palsy. Today, OCPSA is a leading sport organization in the province for persons with a disability, focused on sport development, participation and performance for athletes in Para-Athletics (Track and Field) and Boccia.
Organization Contact for Media Inquiries:
Juliana von Cramon, Program Manager
Ontario Cerebral Palsy Sports Association
juliana@ocpsa.com
