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We’re celebrating Sophie Newnham, a first-year Accounting and Finance undergraduate student, who has achieved world number one in boccia and making tremendous progress towards her goal of becoming a Paralympian, with aspirations to compete in the sport in 2028.

Boccia, is a precision ball paralympic sport, requiring accuracy and strategy with players aiming to get their ball as close to the target ball as possible.

As Sophie settles into life at Sussex, she is already showing how academic study and elite sport can successfully coexist. Building on her rapid rise in boccia and her long-term Paralympic ambitions, she reflects on how university life is shaping her growth — and how the support around her is helping her thrive both as a student and an athlete.

Balancing elite sport and academic life

Sophie explains how the discipline of elite sport strengthens her academic life, and how she’s preparing for future challenges:

“My sporting life has equipped me with self-advocacy skills, time management and organisation skills. This transitions nicely into my academic programme to ensure I can balance academics with elite sport.

“There’s a chance 2028 will be a very stressful year with both the LA Paralympic Games and my final year of university. However, I completed my A Levels just a month before competing at the European Championships, and so I am hoping I can replicate a similar approach in order to balance both of these major milestones.

“Having such a big focus on both sports and academics gives me exposure to such different opportunities and ultimately leaves my options for the future open, but currently I enjoy doing both at the same time”.

Personal growth, independence and identity

Sophie also reflects on how the transition to university has shaped her personal development:

“I have found university to be more challenging than college, so it has certainly been a step up, although being busier has almost helped me in a way to become more focused and self-disciplined.

“Since starting Boccia, my confidence has grown and that has continued since starting university. Moving away from home and living in halls is such a new experience but has given me a sense of independence”.

Support systems and the Sussex environment

Sophie highlights the impact of Sussex’s environment and support networks on her academic and sporting journey:

“I was drawn to the University of Sussex due to its location, proximity to Brighton and overall accessibility. The uni is a really nice place to live too. Sussex has a commitment to sports, and they can cater for my training, which was incredibly appealing. I attended an open day last year, and I could immediately picture my life here.

“The disability support team at Sussex have been so helpful, especially in the first term of starting university, to ensure everything was correctly set up for me. This included exam arrangements and general accessibility to classes on campus. The sports team at Sussex have supported me to have an amazing training setup and programme on campus”.

We are excited for Sophie Newnham’s future and wish her the very best as she continues her journey towards the 2028 Paralympics.