The B.C. government is extending congratulations to Paralympic medallist Josh Vander Vies for his bronze medal in boccia at the London 2012 Games, announced Ida Chong, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development.

Vander Vies and his partner Marco Dispaltro of St. Jérôme, Quebec defeated Great Britain 8-2 in the bronze medal boccia (BC4) match. The gold medal game saw Brazil take the championship with a 5-3 victory over the Czech Republic. It was the first Paralympic medal win for Vander Vies, who also competed at the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games.

Today's medal raises B.C.'s medal count to five. Vander Vies will also compete in the Boccia mixed individual event (BC4) on Sept. 6.

Boccia is similar to lawn bowls and is played in more than 50 countries around the world.

Quote:

Ida Chong, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development -

"Congratulations to Josh Vander Vies for his bronze medal win today - Canada's first ever BC4 Paralympic boccia medal. Josh and his partner Marco Dispaltro have trained long and hard and this medal is richly deserved. As a British Columbian who is already known for inspiring others, Josh's medal today further cements his legacy as a role model for aspiring athletes everywhere."

Quick Facts:

• Date of birth: Dec. 28, 1984.

• Head coach: Mario Delisle.

• Vander Vies holds a double major in political science and French from the University of Western Ontario.

• Vander Vies studies law at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

Learn More:

Josh Vander Vies: http://joshvandervies.com/

London 2012: http://www.london2012.com/paralympics/boccia/

Canadian Paralympic Committee: http://paralympic.ca/

Contact:

Jeff Rud
Communications Director
Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development
250 953-3677
250 208-4028 (cell)