VANCOUVER- Paralympic Games champion Paul Gauthier of Vancouver defeated two players that he lost to in previous encounters on Tuesday to win the gold medal at the boccia World Cup being held at B.C. Place.

Boccia is a sport similar to lawn bowls and played by athletes with cerebral palsy.  This year’s World Cup is also a qualifying tournament for the 2008 Paralympic Games.

In the championship final in the BC 3 category, Gauthier scored four points in the first round and held on for a 4-3 victory over Grigoris Polychronidis of Greece.  Polychronidis has beaten Gauthier in their last encounter at the 2006 Défi Sportif in Montreal.

‘’What a game,’’ said Gauthier, who works as a community capacity coordinator with the B.C., Paraplegic Association.  ‘’Grig had my number the last time and for me to pull this out is something I’m darn proud of.  He made a mistake in that first round and I was able to plug in four there.  I had to stay focused after a pretty big high there and keep my cool.’’

Winning a major international tournament in his hometown is a dream come true for Gauthier.

‘’Getting a gold at home, is awesome.  I wanted it badly.  My friends, family and colleagues have been e-mailing me everyday and giving me great support.’’

In the quarterfinals, Gauthier defeated Mario Peixoto of Portugal 7-1.  At the world championships last year, Peixoto knocked Gauthier out of the tournament in the round of 16.  In the semifinals, Gauthier defeated Yun Jong Jung of South Korea 5-4.

‘’This is a major step for me to beat those three players in one day. It’s just been a whirlwind day. ‘’

Gauthier also lauded his sport assistant Sarah Douglas of Vancouver.

‘’It was so exciting,’’ said Douglas.  ‘’I am tremendously proud of him and our teamwork together and how it all worked out so well.  I couldn’t have asked for better.  I knew we were prearaped and I knew it was possible.’’

In the same category,   Alison Kabush of Surrey, B.C., was eliminated in the quarterfinals.

In the BC 2 playoffs, Adam Dukovich of Mississauga, Ont., lost the bronze medal match 6-0 to Nigel Murray of Britain and placed fourth.

‘’He scored four in the first round and that was the game,’’ said Dukovich.  ‘’I just had a bad end.  It was my third game of the day and I was feeling worn out.’’

Canadian national team head coach Mario Délisle was pleased with the overall performance by Canada in the individual tournament.

‘’Having three players challenge for medals was a big step forward,’’ said Délisle.  ‘’The caliber of play here was so high we can hardly ask for better.  For Paul it was a magnificent tournament.  He worked very hard for this and it paid off.’’

Competition in pairs and team gets underway Thursday.

For more information
Dominique Tremblay
CCPSA
(819) 360-6333
Dominique@ccpsa.ca