Boccia at the Summer Paralympics


Boccia has been contested at the Summer Paralympics since the 1984 Games in New York City and Stoke Mandeville.
This sport requires strategy and precision, and is similar to curling or French pétanque. It is played on a court 12.5 m by 6 m wide. Each team has 6 leather balls, and must bring them as close as possible to a white ball called a “jack”.
Five boccia events were held at those games, two for men, two for women, and one mixed event where men and women competed together. From 1988 until 2020, all boccia events at the Paralympics have been mixed. In 2024, separate events for men and women as individuals will be reintroduced, while pairs and team competition will remain mixed sex. Athletes in this sport have cerebral palsy and are given a classification according to the extent of their disability. There were originally two classes, C1 and C2, with C1 corresponding to those with more severe impairment. In 1996 a "C1 with aid device" class was added, and in 2000 the system was changed to have four classes, BC1 through BC4.
With the reintroduction of the separate sex classifications for individual play, the 2024 Paralympic Games will have the highest number of events in the history of the sport, eleven.

Events

The table below gives the total number of boccia events and the disability classifications contested in individual, pairs, and team competition for each edition of the Summer Paralympics. All events were mixed unless noted otherwise.
YearNumber
of events
Individual eventsPairs eventsTeam events
19845Men's C1
Men's C2
Women's C1
Women's C2
Open
19883C1
C2
C1–C2
19923C1
C2
C1–C2
19965C1
C1 with aid device
C2
C1 with aid deviceC1–C2
20005BC1
BC2
BC3
BC3BC1–BC2
20047BC1
BC2
BC3
BC4
BC3
BC4
BC1–BC2
20087BC1
BC2
BC3
BC4
BC3
BC4
BC1–BC2
20127BC1
BC2
BC3
BC4
BC3
BC4
BC1-BC2
20167BC1
BC2
BC3
BC4
BC3
BC4
BC1-BC2
20207BC1
BC2
BC3
BC4
BC3
BC4
BC1-BC2
202411Men's BC1
Men's BC2
Men's BC3
Men's BC4
Women's BC1
Women's BC2
Women's BC3
Women's BC4
BC3
BC4
BC1-BC2

Medal table

Updated after the 2024 Summer Paralympics

Multi medalists

Boccia players who have won two gold medals or five medals. Active players are in bold.
No.AthleteCountryYearsGamesGenderGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1Dirceu PintoBrazil