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The Paris Paralympic Games has come to an end for boccia stars Daniel Michel and Jamieson Leeson, after going down to defending Paralympic champions, Republic of Korea, 4-2 in the quarter-finals of the mixed pairs BC3.
It was not the fairytale ending the duo were chasing, after making history two days earlier by claiming silver medals in the individual BC3 competition, marking Australia’s best result in Paralympic boccia.
Coming into the Paralympic Games ranked number one in the world in the mixed pairs, it was highly tipped that Australia would meet South Korea in the gold medal play off.
But after Australia topped their pool, Republic of Korea uncharacteristically dropped a game in the pool stages that saw them meet in the quarter-finals.
In what was a tense game, with Republic of Korea getting off to an early 2-0 lead after the first end, with the Aussies staging a solid comeback in the second and third ends. It all came down to the final end – even the final ball – and Republic of Korea was able to edge out Australia.
Triple Paralympian Michel was disappointed to bow out early, but incredibly proud of the medals they secured and the way they played in today’s quarter final.
“It was always going to be a super tough game today, the Republic of Korea are world number two, and in a way our arch nemesis over the last few years,” Michel said.
“Today we went out and fought really well, and to take it all the way down to the last ball, you wouldn’t want the quarter-final to end any other way. It’s just unfortunate, it didn’t fall our way today.
“But we’ll take the two silver medals… it has been an amazing couple of weeks for us over here.
Leeson echoed Michel’s sentiments, saying the silver medals will not only be a game changer for them personally, but for the recognition of the sport within Australia.
“We’ve seen in Rio and Tokyo what Dan’s done to build the profile of the sport, and now, to be playing a role in the advancement of boccia as well… it’s incredible to be a part of that.
“Of course it would have been nice to finish off with another medal this time around in the pairs, but that is sport.
“For now, we’ll take a bit of time off for the rest of the year, and then we’ve got our regional championships next year, which is the qualification for the world championships in 2026,” Leeson said.
Watch the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games on the 9Network and 9Now live and free, and on Stan Sport till 8 September.
By: Lauren Ryan, Paralympics Australia
Published: 4 September 2024
