North East based
not-for-profit organisation SMILE Through Sport, founded by Northumbria alumnus
and Paralympian Stephen Miller MBE, is hosting the biggest ever Boccia open event
to take place in England.
Boccia, pronounced bot-cha, is a Paralympic sport
similar to bowls. Its name derives from the Italian word meaning
"bowl" and the sport is thought to be one of the first games played
by mankind, with roots in ancient Greece and Egypt.
A game full
of tactics and skill, Boccia is played in a sports hall with soft leather
balls. It is primarily popular among severely impaired disability groups but
can be played by people of any ability or impairment.
Over 100 players
will take part in the sixth SMILE Boccia Open for individuals. The competition, which
takes place on Sunday 9th February from 10am until 5pm, will take place at Northumbria
University’s world-class, £30 million sports centre and events arena, Sport
Central.
An open and
inclusive event, the competition welcomes all disability groups with players
from beginner to international level. Participants aged from just 8 to 56 years
old will descend on Sport Central from across the North East as well as from Sheffield,
Scotland, Scarborough and Leeds.
SMILE (Stephen
Miller Inspiring Learning and Enjoyment) Through Sport is a not-for-profit
organisation founded in 2013 by Paralympian Stephen Miller MBE and his wife
Rachel Miller, who is the Managing Director of the business. Their mission is to provide and encourage high quality
disability sports opportunities while inspiring individuals to participate,
ultimately improving the perception and culture surrounding disability sport –
the SMILE Boccia Open is a key calendar date supporting this mission.
With a
former Northumbria student as its helm, SMILE Through Sport was able to access
business support from the University. In
its infancy, the organisation benefited from legal and marketing help through the
Student & Graduate Enterprise, a service which provides alumni free advice
from specialist advisors.
SMILE Through Sport
founder Stephen Miller said: “As a former Northumbria University student I am
delighted to be bringing our Boccia Open to Sport Central. Sport has been a large
part of my life and I am passionate about the impact it can have on someone’s
physical and mental health. This year we are expecting over 120 people at this
competition making it the biggest Boccia open ever in the UK. I would like to
say thank you to Irwin Mitchell and Northumbria University for helping us with
this event”.
Northumbria’s Head of
Sport and Exercise, Katy Storie, said: “We are delighted to be supporting SMILE
Through Sport by hosting England’s biggest ever Boccia Open here at Sport
Central. Boccia is a fantastic sport to play and to watch and holding this
event here at Northumbria is a great way to highlight the empowering effects of
disability sport and the work that Stephen and the SMILE Through Sport team
do.”
Stephen, who graduated
from Northumbria with a BSc (Hons) in Business Information Systems in 2002, is
a professional athlete and competes in field athletics in the F32 Club Throw
event.
He has represented Great
Britain for over 20 years having competed in six Paralympic Games, six World
Championships and five European Championships, gaining 26 international medals
in the process. The well-decorated athlete has been given several honours over
the years, the latest of which was receiving MBE award in the 2016 New Year’s
honours. Stephen is currently in training for Tokyo 2020 - his seventh
Paralympic adventure.
Spectators are welcome to
pop along to watch the event at Sport Central this Sunday, no ticket necessary.
