Double European medal success for Larne Boccia star Claire Taggart

Larne native and Great Britain Boccia Paralympian Claire Taggart won a silver at the European Regional Championships in Zagreb and was part of the three person GB that took home the gold medal.
Claire TaggartClaire Taggart
Claire Taggart

Taggart was delighted with the double success and is aiming for more in the next 18 months.

“Securing both a gold and silver at the European Regional Open Championships has given me a great boost ahead of the European Championships in August, this is a big couple of years as qualifiers for the Paralympics in Tokyo begin and I am determined to keep the momentum going,” said Taggart

“I would like to thank everyone involved in the competition and my training, this is a significant personal achievement being the first Individual medal that I have secured at a BISfed event.”

“It is also the first time that anyone from Northern Ireland has medalled at the European Regional Open.”

“I would to congratulate my BC1/2 team from GB, David Smith MBE and Reegan Stevenson, this was Reegan’s debut competition and a great start to the 2019 season.”

In the BC2 Individuals Final, Claire faced Belgium’s Francis Rombouts who is currently ranked 17th in the World and after a brave performance, Claire conceded to a 4-1 defeat. Having secured Silver, Claire’s world ranking has gone from 34th to an impressive 22nd and also 3rd best female in her class.

In the team competitions, Claire and her GB team mates David Smith MBE and Reegan Stevenson gave a nail biting performance against Slovakia to secure a 4-3 victory and the title.

Claire competed in the 2016 Rio Paralympics and 2018 Boccia World Championships as is currently the UK Boccia Champion following her victory last year. Her next major competition is in August 2019 at the European Championships.

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