From despair to delight: Jeralyn Tan’s journey to boccia silver at the Paralympics

SINGAPORE – Sitting in their nephew’s house at Jalan Kayu while surrounded by family, Rayven Tan and Elin Goh could not stop the tears from flowing on Sept 2.

On the TV before them, their 35-year-old daughter Jeralyn Tan had

won a silver in boccia at the Paris Games

to become only Singapore’s fourth Paralympic medallist after swimmers Yip Pin Xiu and Theresa Goh and equestrienne Laurentia Tan. 

Yet the tears were not solely for the historic moment.

For the couple, Jeralyn’s achievement was tinged with memories of the family’s journey – from the initial shock of learning about their daughter’s cerebral palsy, trying to find a “cure” for the condition and the pain of enduring unwelcome stares and harsh comments from strangers.

It was a poignant reminder of how far they have come, something they would never have envisioned in the early, uncertain stages of Jeralyn’s life.

“The early days were a struggle, they were very hard for us as first-time parents. It was disastrous,” said Tan, 62, of raising his only child, in an interview with The Straits Times at their home in Choa Chu Kang.

The couple first noticed something was wrong when six-month-old Jeralyn was not able to control her head movements. Subsequent medical checks revealed that she had cerebral palsy, which is caused by abnormal brain development or damage that affects a person’s ability to control their muscles.

In their desperation and at the advice of friends and family, they travelled to temples and clinics across Singapore and Malaysia, searching for a cure that did not exist.

Tan, who works in the logistics industry, said: “As parents, we had to try everything. At the same time, we too were learning how to deal with being parents. So many things were new to us. We also had to be with her at all times because she was not able to even sit alone. She always needed one of us beside her to support her or she would fall.”

Till today, Jeralyn needs assistance with basic toileting needs and has to be helped onto her bed. 

Taking their daughter out often drew unwanted stares and as she grew older, strangers would even question why someone who appeared to be an adult needed assistance. But her parents quietly endured it all, with strong support from their extended family.

Tan’s sister and late brother, as well as Goh’s nine siblings, stepped in to help with Jeralyn’s care, offering mental and even financial support. Every Sunday, the whole family gather for a meal, giving Jeralyn time to connect with over 20 cousins.

This tradition began when she was young to allow her to socialise, as she was homeschooled owing to the difficulties of finding a school that could cater to children with special needs.

At eight, Jeralyn joined the Cerebral Palsy Alliance Singapore (CPAS). She picked up boccia as a co-curricular activity in 2002, and a year later participated in the National Disability Games. In 2008, she competed in the Asean Para Games in Thailand, winning a bronze medal in the individual BC2 category. 

Boccia means “to bowl” in Italian and the aim of the game, played by athletes in wheelchairs, is to bowl balls as close as possible to a white target ball known as the jack. At the end of each of the four rounds, the player whose ball is closest to the jack scores one point. Players also receive an additional point for every ball that sits nearer to the jack than the opponent’s closest ball.

Jeralyn was initially misclassified as a BC2 player and struggled with “a lot of losses”. Boccia consists of four sport classes: BC1 and BC3 athletes may have assistance (those in BC1 are typically on a powered wheelchair, BC3 can use a ramp), while BC2 and BC4 athletes compete independently.

But this was also when Yurnita Omar, who has been her coach since 2016, witnessed her protege’s strength.

Yurnita, 52, said: “No matter how much I push her, she always comes back for more. Some athletes will want to give up and quit the sport, especially after losses. But I have never heard that from her.

“She is always back the next day with a smile. I admire that about her and that’s the spirit that an athlete should have.”

Jeralyn’s father added: “She puts in a lot of work. She wakes up before 6am on most days. She would need to travel with her helper all the way to Pasir Ris for training and she will do this even when there is heavy rain. She would not complain.”

Reclassified as a BC1 player in 2015, Jeralyn’s fortunes improved. She earned multiple medals, including a bronze at the 2022 Asean Para Games and a silver in 2023. Now she is the world’s top-ranked female BC1 player after winning three editions of the World Boccia Cup in 2023 and 2024.

But her crowning moment was in Paris, where the individual boccia events were separated by gender for the first time since 1984.

Jeralyn, who was awarded the Sport Excellence Scholarship (spexScholarship) in 2023, seized this opportunity to claim the silver on her Paralympic debut. Her medal also earned her $300,000 from the Singapore National Paralympic Council’s Athlete Achievement Awards.

Jeralyn, told ST that boccia “makes me happy” and that she had not expected to medal in Paris even though she yearned to “bring something back for Singapore”. She and coach Yurnita hope that her achievement will help grow the pool of boccia players here so she can have more sparring partners. 

Reflecting on their emotions when Jeralyn won the silver, Tan said: “As parents, we were always worried about her future. We thought ‘what will she do when she is older?’ Of course, even now we worry what will happen to her when we are gone.

“But to see that she is a Paralympian, a Paralympian with a medal is something we never imagined.”

Jeralyn’s greatest gift to her community is to inspire others like her. On Sept 13, she returned to a welcome parade at CPAS with 250 clients, students, staff and guests.

Ding Kai, 42, a client at the CPAS Day Activity Centre and a BC2 boccia player, played a round alongside Jeralyn that day. He said: “Now when I play boccia, I think of Jeralyn. ‘What if that was me?’ It makes me believe that if I work hard, I might succeed too.”

Jeralyn now has her sights on gold at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, but for her parents, everything will be a bonus – including the wefie request from a taxi driver who recognised her as she made her way to CPAS.