The location of the white boccia ball (the target) in the national interleague chess and boccia championship in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia

Abstract

Cerebral palsy (CP) describes a group of permanent disorders of movement and posture that cause limitations in activity and are attributed to non-progressive alterations in the brain development of the fetus or infant. The motor disorders of cerebral palsy are often accompanied by alterations in sensation, perception, cognition, communication, and behavior, as well as epilepsy and secondary musculoskeletal problems (Rosem Baum, Paneth, Levinton, Goldstein, & Bax, 2007, p. 9). Boccia is a sport exclusively for people with disabilities (cerebral palsy) in wheelchairs, although a category reserved for the physically disabled was created. It consists of placing bocce balls of the same color closest to the target or the white ball to earn points. It can be played individually, in pairs, or in teams, and there is a special classification for this (Bernal Ruiz, 2010). The playing field must be flat and smooth, like the floor of a gym with tiles or wood. The surface must be clean and measure 12.5 m x 6 m. The throwing area is divided into six throwing boxes. For this research, 233 photographs corresponding to the location of the white ball in each game of the individual categories were analyzed in order to define the trend in the location of the white ball in the National Interleague Championship held in the city of Cartagena in 2013. For the analysis of the data obtained, the court was divided into nine equal squares from the end vertex of line V, taking into account the rules for the white ball (the target) to be valid. Of the 233 photographs analyzed, we can highlight that quadrants 1 and 2 with 44, 3 with 40, and 5 with 43 throws were the most used for White Ball throws, and that quadrant 9 was the least used with 1 throw.