After a break of two years, Kieran Steer from Crossgates made a return to competitive boccia at the Scottish Disability Sport Invitational event at Engage Sports Centre in Edinburgh this weekend.
Kieran has prepared well for his return to high performance boccia but he could not have expected such a positive outcome after over two years away from the sport.
Kieran initially played Paul Mclister and Jayne Milligan from Northern Ireland and had significant victories. His final match for the gold medal was against fellow countryman Ross Munro and he was over the moon with his 5-2 victory.
Kieran reported that it was wonderful to be back playing again but the victories were not as important as how well he delivered his shots and managed the challenges of competition after so much time away from the court.
Kieran is Disability Sport Fife’s first ever high performance boccia player. As a junior Kieran won gold at the World Junior Para-Sport Games in Brazil. In boccia pairs rankings Kieran reached as high as 3 in the BC4 class and 11th in the BC4 class individual rankings. Kieran was part of Team GB for World Championships in Beijing in 2014 and the Paralympic Games in Rio in 2016.
After Rio, Kieran took time off from boccia to pursue other interests and concentrate on other aspects of his life. Kieran is now engaged to Cat Spencer who was a delegate at the UKCC Level 1 Boccia course at Lochgelly High School last weekend and is committed to boccia coaching.
Kieran is now driving and fully committed once again to the sport he loves. This is undoubtedly great news for Fife and Scotland. We all know what a talent he is and how much he has to offer the sport.
Kieran swims at the Michael Woods Sports & Leisure Centre and is supported by the Fife Sports and Leisure Trust through the Talented Athlete programme.
Richard Brickley MBE – President Disability Sport Fife