What sport is this that gave Portugal its second gold at the 2024 Paralympic Games?

On the fourth day of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, Cristina Gonçalves won the third medal for the Portuguese team in boccia. Do you know what this sport consists of?

After Miguel Monteiro's gold in athletics and Diogo Cancela's bronze in swimming, Cristina Gonçalves, 46, won the second Portuguese gold in the individual tournament bowl BC2 of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, defeating South Korean Soyeong Jeong in the final.
This was his sixth participation in the Games, having won his fourth Paralympic medal, and the first in individual competitions.

Portuguese athlete Cristina Gonçalves celebrates with her coach after winning the gold medal in the Boccia BC2 final at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, 1 September 2024. Credit: António Pedro Santos, Lusa

What Paralympic sport is boccia?
It's pronounced 'Bot-cha' and is a a universal modality, descended from a game from ancient Greecewhich progressed throughout the Roman Empire, giving rise to a wide range of games, including bowling and petanque.
Boccia was introduced in Portugal in 1983during a course organized by the Portuguese Cerebral Palsy Association, in close collaboration with the International Cerebral Palsy Sports and Recreation Association.
The objective of sport is to place the colored balls (six blue versus six red) as close as possible to a target ball (cue ball)which is strategically thrown by a first player, into the playing area (Boccia Court).



Skill, agility and intelligence become fundamental in the development of plays, often witnessing a true spectacle of alternating advantages, through the application of techniques and tactics appropriate to each circumstance.
There is no age limit for practicing this sport, it is a mixed game and can be played by people with or without physical or motor difficulties. The material resources, as well as the Boccia Rules, have been adapted to allow people with motor difficulties to play.
According to the Cerebral Palsy – National Sports Association, at a national level we have several athletes of recognized merit and international value. This Sunday, the Portuguese Cristina Gonçalves won the second gold medal for Portugal in these Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, in the BC2 individual boccia tournament.