Yushae DeSilva-Andrade and Omar Hayward enjoyed medal triumph after winning silver at the World Boccia Challenger event in Santiago, Chile.

Having been in dominant form throughout her first three matches in the round-robin stage of the BC1 Division, beating Argentina’s Mariela Fuchs (9-0), Brazil’s Beatriz Marta Das Chagas (3-1) and Lois Martin, of Canada (10-0), Andrade set up a title showdown with Ailen Flores, of Argentina, who also held a flawless record heading into the final match.

Despite a valiant effort against the former world No 1, it was Flores who prevailed in a narrow 5-3 victory.

Although she missed out on gold, Andrade was delighted to have won another silver on the international stage, having also finished second at the at the World Boccia Cup in Montreal in May.

“I’m feeling really good about winning this medal and the competition as a whole,” she said. “I managed to have three straight wins which was awesome for me.

“This is back-to-back silver medals for me and I’m just really excited about that.”

Hayward was also enjoyed a superb run of form throughout the tournament, breezing through pool B of the BC1 Male Division following up a 16-0 thrashing of El Salvador’s Kevin Barillas Murga, by battling back to claim a thrilling 6-4 win over Lance Cryderman, of Canada, to seal his progression to the semi-finals.

There he once again had to show resilience against Caio Henrique Martins, of Brazil, coming back from a 3-0 deficit to ultimately prevail in an 8-3 success and set up a match with Mexico’s Eduardo Sanchez Reyes in the final.

However, it proved a tough outing as his opponent raced into a 5-0 lead in the first end before going on wrap up a 9-0 win to take the title.

“Overall was a fantastic competition for Omar and Yushae and to win two silver medals at an international competition is no easy feat considering the high level of competition,” said coach Troy Farnsworth. “Both players should be extremely proud of their achievements.”

The duo will not turn their attention to preparing for the Para Pan American Games to be held at the same venue in Chile in November, with Farnsworth confident both can build on the momentum of their latest success.

“Yushae winning silver at the last two competitions should definitely give her a lot of confidence,” he said. “I think she can match it with anyone and has proven she can compete with any player in the world.

“There is no reason why she cannot keep this momentum going.

“This will also put Omar in good stead and should push him up the world rankings heading into the rest of the year where anything can happen.”