Watcharaphon Vongsa

Started: He began playing boccia in 2003. (Athlete, 11 Sep 2016) Reason: He was introduced to the sport at school. "When I first played boccia, I thought, 'This sport is just for me'. It was the first time I felt hope in life. I knew I was born to play boccia." (WOWOW Official YouTube channel, 02 Sep 2018; boccia2013.com.au, 01 Oct 2013) Milestones: At the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo he became the second boccia player from any nation to win four career Paralympic gold medals [after Brazil's Dirceu Pinto] and the first Thai boccia player to win five career Paralympic medals of any colour. (SportsDeskOnline, 01 Jul 2024) He and his teammates Witsanu Huadpradit, Mongkol Jitsa-Ngiem and Pattaya Tadtong became the first athletes representing Thailand to win a gold medal in boccia at the Paralympic Games by claiming victory in the mixed BC1-2 team event at the 2012 Games in London. (SportsDeskOnline, 10 Dec 2020) Awards: In 2017 he received the Royal Cup Award for Outstanding Athletes with an Impairment in Thailand. (thairath.co.th, 04 Apr 2020) He received a sporting achievement award in 2017 from the Sport Writers Association of Thailand in recognition of his performance at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (tddf.or.th, 18 Dec 2017; sportwritersthai.com, 18 Aug 2017)