“I know I will be good and I know Paris will be good.”

A bold claim, but a fitting confidence considering these are the words of Britain’s most successful bocce player.

David Smith is a three-time Paralympic gold medalist, has more world and European championship titles to his name than you can throw a bocce ball at, and is instantly recognisable by his daring choice of hair colour.

Before travelling to the French capital and this important hair appointment, Smith took time out for a chat at LC2 in Swansea.

The 35-year-old has made the city his home since moving here from Southampton for his university studies, and of course he is welcomed as one of his own in Wales.

When Smith triumphed in Tokyo three years ago, he was invited to display his gold medal at a Swansea City game, although he admits he has divided loyalties with the Saints.

Now, with the Paralympics fast approaching on August 28, Smith is focused solely on one team: Paralympics GB.

Summit preparation

This will be Smith’s fifth Games, having made his debut in Beijing in 2008, and he says he can’t wait to experience the success of the Olympics.

“The preparations were good, I peaked at the right time,” said Smith.

“I had a training camp a few weeks ago and was in top form, so I took a break, pulled myself together and put my feet up a bit to get the energy I needed for Paris.

“I’m doing well.

“The most exciting thing is getting there, doing the first warm-up, feeling confident on the pitch and getting ready for the first game.”

When asked if he would take part in a comprehensive sports experience, such as a village bulletin board swap, Smith laughed.

“I’m not one of those people who cares about all that other stuff. My job is to play and I want to put on a show,” he said.

“What will be, will be”

Although Smith is a world-ranked player, he will face strong competition from Indonesian Muhamad Syafa and Thai Witsanu Huadpradit.

“Right now, you could flip a coin between the three of us,” he said.

“There are two other players among us: Daniel Perez from the Netherlands and Andre Ramos from Portugal, who could also do well on this day.

“So that’s already five and there are only three medals.

“I know that if I play my best, I have a good chance of winning. But my focus is not necessarily on winning, but on playing as well as I can and then it will be what it is.”

“I feel like I’m coming in as the hunter rather than the hunted this time because I’ve been beaten by the other two recently. So even though I’m coming in as number one, I feel like they’ve got the target on their back and I’m going into it with the mindset that maybe he’s lost control a little bit.

“I really like this, maybe I can prove some people wrong.”

Team player

Although Smith has won just about everything there is to win in individual bocce, his passion now lies in helping the team win.

He will play for Great Britain alongside world champion Claire Taggart and newcomer Kayleigh Haggo.

“Of course the individual players are great. I like to play well and stuff, but after that the best thing is to be on the podium with my teammates. I haven’t done that in a long time and I want to get back there,” Smith said.

“We are confident, but not overconfident. The team games are very close, the best eight teams could all beat each other and win in the end.”

“We did well in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, but we always stumbled over the finish line in the final. So if we can do that for Paris, I’ll be delighted.”

“It would be great if we won a medal.”

How long can he continue?

It’s hard to believe that Smith has been competing in the Paralympics for half his life. Could he be tempted to retire after Paris?

“I will see what happens in Paris and after that I have to make some decisions, but I have no plans to retire any time soon,” he said.

“I feel good. As long as I’m still competitive, I’ll keep going as long as I can. The only thing that would make me stop would be if we won gold with the team.”

Whatever happens, Smith is looking forward to his year off and insists that once the balls are put away, they stay away.

“I’m not one of those people who is dedicated to their sport,” Smith added.

“I love it, but I’m also pretty good at keeping things in perspective. When I’m not playing bocce, I’m definitely doing something else and not always thinking about balls.

“When the balls are in their case, they are tight in their case, locked, closed and you don’t think about them.”

Until then, everything revolves around the Paralympics and adding more gold medals to the already impressive haul.

And what about the hair? Where better to show it off than in one of the world’s fashion capitals?

We are waiting eagerly.