Despite challenges, number of disabled referees growing across Para sports

Kevin Shaw has been around the game of boccia for forty-plus years. He's been an athlete and currently serves on multiple boards within the sport. Now, he's starting a new journey: becoming a boccia referee. 

However, seeing a referee with a physical disability is a rarity in much of Para sport.

Shaw, who has cerebral palsy, said that within boccia, the biggest challenge — one that he would like to see be alleviated faster — is changing assumptions.

"I think the biggest issue is culture change, having people believe that people with disabilities can referee or coach."

In boccia, referees are expected to perform physical tasks, such as holding the paddle that signifies which athlete is supposed to throw next and getting down on the ground to measure which balls are closest to the jack �— akin to the button in curling.

Shaw, like any Para athlete, has workarounds. He's cut red and blue socks to wear on his arms that he raises to indicate to the athletes who is to throw next. He also has an assistant who he can instruct to perform the physical tasks that the former BC3-classified athlete can't do in the way an able-bodied official would. Currently, he referees at the provincial level, calling himself "the new kid on the block." 

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Shaw, who is part of a working group focused on the further inclusion of disabled referees, said that an issue that referees with disabilities have, much like their athlete counterparts, is how costs are going to be paid in order for them to travel to competitions with the support they need.

There are a number of international referees in boccia who have visible disabilities. Peter Leyser, the executive director