Maryland's unified bocce scene ‘taking off’ with help from portable courts

The 2025 Interscholastic Unified Sports Indoor Bocce State Tournament showcased the momentum of Maryland's unified bocce movement, with 32 teams battling for state honors on 12 portable Packabocce courts at Hagerstown Community College.

Held on 11 March, the tournament was evidence of the continuing growth of unified bocce in Maryland schools, where participation has increased by 23% in the past year – from 1,471 players in the 2023-2024 season to 1,812 players in 2024-2025.

Special Olympics Maryland Senior Director of High School Unified Sports Zachary Cintron says Packaworld’s high-quality inflatable courts have helped the sport grow in schools across the American state.

"We've been using the courts for years at state level, but they've only recently been used in schools. Post-Covid, the bocce scene in Maryland is definitely growing and our unified bocce program is taking off.”

Two years ago, Baltimore County joined the Special Olympics Maryland program, adding 12 new high schools to the roster. Each school received  at least one Packabocce court as part of the initiative, giving children the experience of playing on professional-level courts.

Cintron said the expansion was evident not just in high schools but in elementary schools too.

The Garrett County Public Schools Unified Bocce Competition in October, now in its second year, featured teams from seven schools and demonstrated how the sport was also gaining traction among younger students in Maryland.

"Bocce is so accessible as a sport, and we're not just talking about the kids who are involved with Special Olympics – bocce is a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone," he said.

Cintron said the portable nature of Packaworld's inflatable courts has been crucial to bocce’s rise in popularity in Maryland, with schools that used makeshift courts before now having professional setups that can be easily deployed and stored.

"It's nice to see our unified programs getting on the same level as football, basketball and soccer with top-level equipment."

Packaworld Chief Executive Peter Roberts said the company was proud to play a part in Maryland's unified bocce success story.

"What's happening in Maryland shows how the right equipment can help break down barriers to participation.

"Our inflatable Packabocce courts were designed with inclusion in mind – they're easy to set up, provide a professional playing experience, and can transform any space into a bocce venue."

The growth of unified bocce in Maryland extends beyond school programs. Community participation has increased by 23%, rising from 469 participants in 2023 to 576 in 2024.

Cintron said Special Olympics Maryland is also expanding into higher education to create a continuous pathway for players by employing a dedicated team member to introduce bocce programs at universities.

"As kids graduate from school, we get them into community bocce programs, so the school programs act as a gateway into people playing bocce for life.

"Unified bocce also helps to develop youth leaders who become assistant coaches and lead programs in years to come."

Significant fundraising efforts are helping to make all this happen, with Special Olympics Maryland raising more than $4.5 million in February this year through the Polar Plunge initiative – a record total. The scheme is a signature Special Olympics fundraising event where brave participants get sponsored to take a chilly winter dip, with all proceeds supporting the organisation’s programs and athletes.

Maryland holds a special place in Special Olympics history, as the movement was founded in Montgomery County by Eunice Kennedy Shriver in 1968. Today, the state boasts impressive participation numbers, with 19,871 unified athletes and more than 8,000 Special Olympics athletes among its population of more than six million.

Unified Sports, a program pioneered by Special Olympics, brings together people with and without intellectual disabilities to play on the same team. Athletes (participants with intellectual disabilities) and Unified Partners (participants without intellectual disabilities) compete side by side, fostering inclusion, friendship, and understanding through shared athletic experiences.

Out of the 27 sports Special Olympics Maryland offers, bocce has become one of the most popular choices due to its accessibility and social nature, Cintron said.

"Bocce is a good way for people to connect through sport and a shared passion. Our school programs have demonstrated this through steady and consistent growth."

Looking to the future, Cintron has ambitious plans to expand Maryland’s bocce program further.

"I want every county that has a school sports program participating in our summer and winter unified bocce programs. It's one of the easier programs for athletes to buy into because it is so accessible," he said.

"For community programs, the next steps are to encourage kids doing the high school program to graduate into the community program as athletes or young leaders."

Bocce’s perennial popularity means the ancient sport has never gone out of sporting fashion, especially not in Maryland, where its resurgence as a renaissance sport rolls on with more momentum than ever before.

"Out here in the west, bocce is going crazy," Cintron said.

>> Find out  about our portable bocce courts on our Packabocce page.

Video: Bocce being introduced to elementary school children in Garrett County