Hamilton boccia star Steph McGuire earns double gold at European championship
Hamilton boccia king Steph McGuire has added double European championship gold to his Paralympics top prize.
McGuire MBE travelled to the international competition just days after collecting his royal honour from the King in a ceremony at Holyrood Palace.
He won gold in the individual BC4 contest in Croatian capital Zagreb, and topped the podium in BC4 pairs with teenage talent Sophie Newnham – which has qualified both for the world championships.
Steph said: 'To come to Zagreb and get double gold at the European championships is something I've never achieved before.
'To come away with this trophy together with Sophie is the icing on the cake; and of course we have qualified for the world championships.'
Britain has done well overall at the Euros, and Steph said: 'The tournament has been fantastic for Great Britain. To come away with four golds and two bronze is a terrific haul.
'Personally, to win two gold medals at my first major event off the back of Paris is more than I thought possible.'
Steph's double triumph comes 10 months after Steph's widely-celebrated success in winning the Paralympic title in Paris, striking gold in his fourth Games after three previous fourth-place finishes.
The European championship saw the talented Hamiltonian face a tough pool of five in the individual competition, in which he won all but one of his group matches.
After beating Gergo Berkes of Hungary and Boris Nicolai of Germany in the play-off and semi-final, McGuire delivered a 7-0 masterclass to beat Portugal's Paulo Cardoso.
In the pairs, McGuire and Newnham won all three pool matches before beating Spain 7-0 in the semi-final and overpowering Germany 5-3 in the final to take the top prize.
Pics by Boccia UK.
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