Giuseppe Romele

Started: He took up Para triathlon in 2022. (Fondo Italia YouTube channel, 08 Aug 2023) Reason: He first participated in Para swimming before later switching to Para cross-country skiing after he missed qualification to compete in swimming at the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. He competed in Para cross-country skiing at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing, after which he was approached by members of the Italian national Para triathlon team who invited him to try the sport. "I tried it [triathlon] and immediately liked it." (gazzetta.it, 23 Apr 2021; bmw-berlin-marathon.com, 01 Jan 2019; Fondo Italia YouTube channel, 08 Aug 2023) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (Fondo Italia YouTube channel, 08 Aug 2023) Awards: In 2023 he received the Collare d'Oro [Golden Necklace] award from the Italian Paralympic Committee. (comitatoparalimpico.it, 23 Dec 2023) He received the Sorriso Diverso Migliore Sportivo [Different Smile Best Sportsperson] award during the Black Silk Tulips International Film Festival of Social Cinematography in Italy in 2023. (sciaremag.it, 09 May 2023) In 2022 he was presented with the Oscar dello Sport Bresciano [Brescian Oscar for Sport] award from the Oscar dello Sport Sports and Culture Association. (sciaremag.it, 19 Nov 2022) In 2021 he was the recipient of the Fiocco d'Oro [Golden Snow Flake] award as Para snow sports athlete of the year from the Italian Winter Sports Federation [FISI] and Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport. (vocecamuna.it, 30 Jun 2021; cuneocronaca.it, 15 Jul 2021; gazzetta.it, 14 Jul 2021) Additional Info: COMBINING CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING AND TRIATHLON Having competed in Para cross-country skiing at the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing, he was approached by members of the Italian national Para triathlon team about taking up the sport. "The [Para triathlon] national team was in Darfo Boario Terme [Italy] on a training camp. I knew very well coach Mario Poletti because he followed me when I raced [in wheelchair racing] at the Berlin Marathon in 2018 and 2019. The chance came up to train with the team and I seized it." He has set his sights on competing in triathlon at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris and in cross-country skiing at the 2026 Paralympic Winter Games in Milan-Cortina. "In 2022 I managed to do well in the [Para triathlon] international circuit, so for the following season I decided to do it again because the qualification for the [2024] Paralympic Games in Paris doesn't look impossible at all. Nordic skiing still remains my main goal because I don't want to settle with a Paralympic bronze medal [in the 10km sitting event at the 2022 Games in Beijing]. I aim higher. It's fair for an athlete to try new challenges in order to have new motivation. And after Beijing I was looking for new ambitions and Para triathlon is giving me some." (sciaremag.it, 09 May 2023; Fondo Italia YouTube channel, 08 Aug 2023; gazzetta.it, 06 Jun 2022)