Just days after competing against many of the world’s top adaptive athletes in Egypt, Folsom’s own Braden Murphy is once again taking the court—this time with another national championship in his sights.
The defending national champion begins play this week at the 2026 USA Boccia National Championships in Council Bluffs, Iowa, where more than 60 of the country’s top athletes will compete July 29 through Aug. 2 in the nation’s premier boccia competition.
For Murphy, the tournament is the latest stop in what has become an extraordinary summer representing the United States on the international stage while continuing his pursuit of a long-term dream—earning a place on Team USA for the 2028 Paralympic Games in Los Angeles.
Born with cerebral palsy, Murphy has established himself as one of America’s top competitors in boccia, competing in the BC2 men’s division, a classification for athletes with physical impairments who throw the ball independently without the assistance of a sport aide.
Earlier this year, Murphy earned an invitation to the USA Boccia National Team Tryouts before being selected to represent the United States at the 2026 World Boccia Challenger in Birmingham, Alabama. The prestigious event marked the first international boccia competition hosted on U.S. soil since 2017 and brought together many of the sport’s top athletes from around the world.
Murphy competed alongside members of the Boccia United States National Team as the organization’s high-performance program continues building toward the LA28 Paralympic Games.
Following Birmingham, Murphy’s journey took him halfway around the world to the Cairo World Boccia Challenger in Egypt, where he faced many of the sport’s highest-ranked international competitors. Now, after thousands of miles of travel and weeks of international competition, he heads directly to Iowa looking to defend the national championship he captured a year ago.
Despite competing around the globe, Murphy says there is still something special about competing in front of a home crowd.
“It’s extra special to have it on U.S. soil,” Murphy said in a previous interview.. “Because I won last year’s national championship… it’s like a double home court advantage.”
This year’s championships also represent a milestone for the sport. For the first time, USA Boccia will crown separate men’s and women’s national champions while awarding prize money to the top finishers, another sign of the sport’s continued growth in the United States.
While boccia remains unfamiliar to many Americans, it has become one of the world’s premier Paralympic sports. Originally developed for athletes with cerebral palsy, the precision sport now includes competitors with a variety of severe physical disabilities and is played in more than 50 countries. Athletes compete by throwing or rolling red and blue balls as close as possible to a white target ball, known as the jack, requiring a combination of strategy, touch and pinpoint accuracy.
For Murphy, each international event and national championship is about more than medals. With the Paralympic Games set to be held on home soil in Los Angeles in 2028, the competition to earn international rankings and national team opportunities has never been greater. Every tournament provides another opportunity to gain experience against the world’s best while strengthening his bid for a future Paralympic roster spot.
Away from competition, Murphy is just as invested in serving his community.
He and his wife, Jessica, are raising their four sons in Folsom. Local residents may also recognize Murphy from his previous campaigns for Folsom City Council, the California State Assembly and the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors.
Throughout those campaigns and his community involvement, Murphy has consistently advocated for people with disabilities, expanded healthcare access and increased support for In-Home Supportive Services caregivers. Whether speaking before local government or representing the United States overseas, Murphy has remained committed to using his platform to improve opportunities for others.
That commitment has made Murphy not only one of the nation’s top adaptive athletes, but also one of Folsom’s most recognizable advocates for the disability community.
Fans can follow Murphy’s pursuit of another national championship through live-streamed matches on the USA Boccia YouTube channel.
Competing at the national and international level, however, comes with considerable travel, training and equipment expenses. While Murphy proudly represents Team USA and the City of Folsom around the world, much of that journey is made possible through the support of family, friends and the community.
Those wishing to help support Murphy’s continued pursuit of national and international competition—including his ultimate goal of representing the United States at the 2028 Paralympic Games in Los Angeles—can contribute through his GoFundMe campaign at https://www.gofundme.com/f/fuel-my-dream-boccia-nationals-in-alabama.
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