Silver for boccia pair, S’pore finish Asian Para Games with no golds for 1st time since 2010

SINGAPORE – It is a case of what could have been for Team Singapore as they ended their week-long campaign at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games without a gold medal.

Boccia duo Aloysius Gan and Nurulasyiqah Mohammad Taha fell at the final hurdle in the mixed pairs BC3 final as they lost 4-2 to home favourites Sayaka Sekine and Kazuki Takahashi on Oct 24.

At the Nagoya City General Gymnasium Rainbow Hall, the Japanese pair operated with pinpoint precision as they took control of the match, winning the first three ends 1-0, 2-0 and 1-0.

Their lead proved to be insurmountable for the Singaporeans and despite their best efforts, Gan and Nurulasyiqah only managed to get two consolation points in the final end.

Reflecting on their performance in Aichi-Nagoya, team captain Nurulasyiqah said: “No regrets at all… We gave our best, enjoyed the competition and are proud of what we have achieved together.

“We have come a long way, and the progress we have made is a reflection of the many hours of training and hard work behind the scenes.

“I am especially happy to have had this opportunity to compete alongside Aloysius again and to see our efforts come together in this way is incredibly rewarding. To finish the Games with another medal for Singapore makes this moment even more special.”

En route to the final, Gan and Nurulasyiqah, who were also Singapore’s first gold medal winners at the World Boccia Championships in September, had defeated India, Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong in the pool stage before edging past Thailand in the semi-final.

Looking ahead, the pair will take a “well-deserved break” before returning to training.

“Our recent World Championships success has also been an encouraging step in our journey towards LA28, but we know there is still plenty of work ahead,” added Nurulasyiqah.

“For now, we want to enjoy this moment, reflect on what we have achieved and continue building on our progress.”

With their final-day silver, Singapore’s 20-member contingent will return home with a record 11 medal haul of six silvers and five bronzes – though it is also the first time the Republic failed to clinch a gold since the inception of the Games in 2010.

Para swimmer Toh Wei Soong notched five medals (two silver, three bronze) this time, while archer Nur Syahidah Alim and boccia players Jovin Tan and Gan won a silver each.

Para-cyclist and debutante Amelia Tan and Jeralyn Tan (boccia) rounded out the tally with bronzes in their respective events.

At the last edition in Hangzhou in 2023, the 33-strong contingent brought home three golds, three silvers and two bronzes.