Boccia star Stephen is 'Right on Target'

Hamish Hutchinson • Published 21 Apr 2010 15:12 0 Comments

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BOCCIA Olympic gold medallist Stephen Donaldson with Pete Moulding and Elise Levey, who supplied him with a new boccia kit.

A MENSTRIE teenager continued to build on his impressive medal tally when he picked up gold for Boccia at the Special Olympics is Leicester.

Stephen Donaldson (18) is a member of the Right on Target Boccia club, which is held on a Thursday evening at Alloa Academy, and travelled to Leicester with four other members of the club, with all five of them picking up medals.

This was the first time that a team had represented the Forth Valley in the sport of Boccia and was a considerable achievement for coach Jean Duncan as all of her team picked up medals.

Right on Target Forth Valley is run by parents and volunteers after Clackmannanshire Council wound-up the after school club which Stephen originally joined when he was at Alva Academy.

Stephen took up the sport when he was 15 and coaches quickly realised he had a talent for the sport and he soon began competing in regional and national competitions and has already won two golds and a silver.

Boccia is an easy game to play and learn and is becoming increasingly popular and can be a gentle recreational activity of a competitive Paralympic sport. The game derives from contemporary bowls and the French version Boules and the aim of the game is to get the Boccia ball as close to the jack as possible and is played between two teams.

Stephen and the rest of his team mates had to raise a considerable amount of money to go to the Special Olympics with Stephen raising £1000 through door to door collections and also a donation of £400 from David Russell who runs the football and darts team at the Hollytree and the Burnside Inn.

Stephen's mum Diane told the Advertiser, "The sport is getting more and more popular and helps with co-ordination and is suitable for all ages and abilities with those in wheelchairs also being able to play.

"Stephen has always been good at sport and puts 100 per cent into any he takes part in. He also takes part in athletics, swimming and football and has represented his former school at shot-putt.

"He will be taking part in the Boccia nationals in June, which are being held in Stirling, and is hoping to pick up another gold medal there."

Stephen works as a kitchen assistant at the Ochil Coffee Shop in Alva and his employer Elise Levey and her partner Peter Moulding, who owns Flying Fox Bikes in the town, decided to donate a set of Boccia balls to the teenager.

Previously Stephen had to borrow the balls from other people to practice and couldn't practice out with the training sessions on a Thursday night but he is now able to practice whenever he wants thanks to the generosity of Elise and Peter.

Elise added, "Stephen has worked for us for seven weeks.

"When myself and my partner discovered he didn't have his own set of Boccia balls we thought it would be good to sponsor him and get him his own set so he could practice whenever he wanted."

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