Sudbury man is bringing the sport of Boccia back for people with severe physical disabilities

Lance Cryderman first discovered Boccia when he was 12 years old.

Living with severe cerebral palsy, he couldn't play sports such as wheelchair basket ball or curling.

"I fell in love with it immediately and played for 11 years," says Cryderman.

He went on to compete in the 2000 Sydney, Australia paralympics.

"Wearing your country's colour is always really exciting for anybody" says Cryderman.

Boccia is an adaptive game for people with cerebral palsy or severe physical disabilities.

All you need to do is propel your ball towards the target ball and the ones who are closest wins the points, says Cryderman.

It is similar to lawn bowling and curling.

Eventually Cryderman left the sport he loved behind to pursue his education.

The Boccia club called the Sudbury Shooting Stars also fell apart due to a lack of volunteers.

Now he is trying to rebuild it back up again. Currently he has a handful of athletes learning the game.

Cryderman is also starting to compete again, as well as coaching the new athletes. He wants people with physical disabilities to know about this sport.

"Boccia was specifically designed for people with severe cerebral palsy, initially, it's actually growing to the point where we are also introducing other disability groups.

He says even if they cannot throw the ball with their hand, they can use an assistive device like a ramp.

"It's generally easy to pick up initially...but as you progress, and develop and hone your skills it becomes very strategic and very complex."

The club members currently practice at a gym at Laurentian University but are worried they will lose their space once the school year starts. They are looking for a permanent place to play.

Cryderman says he is also starting up an eight week program for young people. He's partnering up with the Ontario Cerebral Palsy Sports Association to put on what they call Boccia Bratz.

"It is designed to introduce the game to young children and use the skills of the game to develop therapeutic outcomes for kids with mobility challenges."

The Sudbury Shooting Stars Boccia Club has also launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover the cost for those athletes who want to travel to competitions.

"An elite level Boccia set is going to cost approximately 500 Canadian. We also need to talk about accommodation costs and those kinds of things. And all these athletes are on a fixed income."

Cryderman says they have an opportunity to take part in a competition in London this October.

He says he's also had help from local business man Ryan Benoit who has a clothing line called the Positive Inception. He is supplying them with uniforms.

For more information on the club you can email [email protected].