Last week we held 3 training days in London and Essex, for 40 students to prepare for 3 Boccia England Lord Taverners competitions we are delivering in the next few weeks. This puts young disabled boccia players on the national competition pathway and Panathlon is delighted to be involved.
In London we visited both Ellen Wilkinson Girls School in Ealing and John Fisher Boys School in Croydon to deliver Boccia Training for a total of 30 students. This was the first time students had come across boccia and for an extremely competitive bunch, it proved to be a fantastic sport for them to get to grips with. Throughout the day, students learned the rules of the game whilst having the chance to play against friends and referee a number of games.
The Young Leaders will now have the opportunity to put their learnt skills in to practice at the Lord Taverners South London and West London competitions to be held on the 17th November and 2nd December respectively. 
“All the boys want to be involved in the competition and you can see how enthusiastic they become when they are introduced to a new sport. I know they’ll be excellent on the day so thank you for offering them the opportunity.” said Mike Davies, Teacher at John Fisher School.
In Essex we trained 10 leaders from St John Payne in Chelmsford ready for the competition on Wednesday 19th November. We have used St John Payne leaders for multiple events over the years and they have always been so enthusiastic and willing to learn. We look forward to seeing them in action next week!
