Asian Para Games 2026: Boccia Breakthrough as Mixed Pair Add Silver to Historic Haul

Nurulasyiqah and Gan added a silver to boccia's collection at the Games. Photo: SNPC/ David Wirawan

On the last day of the Aichi-Nagoya Games, reigning BC3 mixed pairs world champions Nurulasyiqah Mohammad Taha and Aloysius Gan added a fourth boccia medal to an already impressive collection for the sport.

Silver at the Nagoya City General Gymnasium Rainbow Hall meant all four of Singapore’s boccia athletes went home with silverware, after Jovin Tan (men’s BC1) and Gan (men’s BC3) clinched silver and Jeralyn Tan (women’s BC1) bagged bronze in the individual events.

“Very happy that everybody has done their best and given their best. To add another medal to our Singapore medal tally, we are honoured and privileged to have this opportunity,” captain Nurulasyiqah said.

“I am very, very happy that this time round everybody goes home with the medal. It has never happened before, so just very proud of our journey so far. In the past two to three years, the whole team has improved leaps and bounds, and we will continue to work hard to maintain or even better this performance at the next Games.”

The team came into the Games off the back of a landmark world championship win. Photo: SpexSG/ Dejbordin Limsupanark

Just like in Korat, where they beat Thai duo Ladamanee Kla Han and Withun Chanthakhat 3-1 in the ASEAN Para Games final, the Singaporeans faced the home favourites in the all-important decider in Nagoya.

Again, they had to contend with a partisan home crowd that packed the stands and roared their support for Japanese world No.2 pairing Sayaka Sekine and Kazuki Takahashi.

“It's great. It’s very rare that we get to hear this kind of spectators cheering. As much as we are doing our best, we also try to absorb the energy. Because we don't experience this very often at other competitions, it's a good experience to learn how to manage these kinds of situations,” Nurulasyiqah said.

The Singaporean pair came into the Games in the form of their lives with a landmark world championship win and gold and bronze in the World Cups at Povoa de Varzim and Astana respectively.

They continued where they left off, carrying a perfect record all the way to Saturday’s (Oct 24) final with an opening 5-2 victory over India, and two come-from-behind wins over Chinese Taipei and Hangzhou silver medallists Hong Kong in the pool stage.

They beat Thailand 4-2 in the semis before losing by the same scoreline to Japan to settle for silver.

Despite heading into the fourth end trailing 4-0, the team stayed positive and “were hoping to make a comeback”.

They mounted a commendable effort but could only come away with two points.

“We did our best. We went in with the plan to enjoy ourselves since we made it all the way into the final match. So we focused on enjoying every end, every ball till the last ball.”

The Singaporeans rose to the top of the world rankings since starting out two years ago. Photo: SpexSG/ Dejbordin Limsupanark

The silver also marks yet another milestone for the fast-rising partnership that began in 2024.

Speaking six languages, Nurulasyiqah remarked, “I haven’t added any more languages, perhaps just Aloysius’s language so that I can understand him.”

She added that this was only possible from “training long hours and on the weekend to familiarise ourselves with each other”.

The Games mark the end of the season for the 41-year-old, though she has said the 2028 Paralympics are “definitely in the plans”, while Gan is slated to take part in November’s Sao Paulo World Cup.

The 5th Asian Para Games are held in Japan from 18 to 24 October 2026. For the latest Team Singapore coverage and news, follow Team Singapore on their social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) or visit the official Team Singapore website.