Redland bocce players have brought home national titles at the 50th annual championships as junior players put the sport in the spotlight.
Enzo Tomasi and Barbara Jones from Redlands Bocce Centre won their respective single titles, and the women's team also won gold at the titles in Morwell, Victoria in June.
Mr Tomasi said he started playing boccce with Italian families at farms in Birkdale as a child.
"A handful of local Italian families pledged time and money to start the Redlands bocce courts with the assistance and backing of the Redlands Sporting Club," he said.
"I started playing competitive bocce when the Juniors' Championships were introduced in 1986..."
At the 2022 national championships, Mr Tomasi won the Men's Singles Title at the Nationals and Best and Fairest. His daughters also competed.
"I felt very excited and totally shocked and honoured when I won Best and Fairest as I was up against very strong competition against... two friends who I first met when we played the World Junior Championships together way back when," he said.
He said he hoped to represent Australia at the world championships in Turkey in October.
Ms Jones said she had played bocce for 35 years and loved the friendships formed in the sport.
"At the titles I performed very well, becoming first at the singles and second at the precision throw," she said.
"It was a pleasure to win as it was quite easy as I won comfortably.
"It has been an honour to have been playing bocce for a such long time and also representing Australia multiple times overseas."
She said she was looking forward to passing her skills on to up and coming bocce players.
Twelve athletes from the Redlands competed from seniors to promising juniors including Daughters of Mr Tomasi Ava and Chiara, Kiara Sadlier, Kayla Sadlier and Carlo Bunin who will represent the club at the Australian Junior Championship in New South Wales in July.
Bocce Australia National Development Officer Vinay Singh has been working in Queensland to grow junior participation in the sport by introducing it to schools and clubs to facilitate the sport.
"Redlands Bocce Centre has executed bocce Australia's Primary School program with a participation average of over 12 students per session from Wellington Point State High School," Mr Singh said.
"The Bocce Centre has expressed its interest in getting more neighbouring schools on board and training them."