Italy announces 17-member roster for Beijing 2022

Italy has announced its 17-member Para ice hockey roster that will represent the country at the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in March.

Italy will be competing in its fifth consecutive Paralympics in the sport dating back to 2006 after winning the Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament last November in Berlin.

It will be the sixth seed in the eight-team tournament, competing in Group B in the preliminary round with the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and China.

About half of Italy’s delegation in Beijing 2022 will be Para ice hockey players, led by three-time Paralympians Nils Larch and Andrea Macri, and four-time Paralympian Gianluigi Rosa.

Larch has been the squad’s most consistent scorer over the last Paralympic cycle, while Macri and Rosa have made up one of the world’s most potent defensive lines.

OPENING AGAINST THE CZECHS

The other forwards on the team include: Alessandro Andreoni, Christoph De Paoli, Gabriele Lanza, Matteo Remotti Marnini, Stephan Kafmann, and Francesco Torella.

The other defensemen include Bruno Balossetti, Gian Luca Cavaliere, Alex Enderle, Julian Kasslatter, Stefan Kerschbaumer, and Roberto Radice.

Gabriele Araudo and Santino Stillitano will split the goaltending duties. Stillitano, born in 1969, will be the oldest member of the entire Italian delegation, competing in his fourth Paralympics.

Italy’s highest finish at the Paralympics came at the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games, where it took fourth place, falling short of its first Paralympic podium place by one goal in the bronze-medal contest against host nation Korea.  

Italy will begin its Paralympic campaign on 5 March with its first preliminary round game against the Czech Republic.