Paralympics, Masters wins women's 10 km cross-country sitting. Romele fourth

Mattia Dal Pastro started in the men's 10 km individual classic technique Paralympic cross-country skiing event.

"Today was really a violent race, because I put everything I had into it, maybe even more. It's a pity about these three seconds, but it's OK". Thus Beppe Romele after his fourth place in the 10 km cross-country. Asked what he thought of the Russian Golupkov, who took the gold and knocked him off the podium (otherwise a photocopy of Beijing 2022), he replied: 'I really respect Ivan and I'm glad he's back to compete in the Paralympics because he's an athlete like everyone else.

From the water of Paris to the snows of Cortina: Giuseppe 'Beppe' Romele is the living embodiment of athletic versatility. Class 1992, from Lovere (Bergamo), born with bilateral femoral hypoplasia, the Lombard champion has signed one of the rarest feats in modern sport: after bronze in the cross-country skiing at Beijing 2022, he qualified and competed in the triathlon at the Paris 2024 Games. This dual soul makes him a total endurance athlete, capable of dominating fatigue 365 days a year. His record on the snow is one of excellence, with the world title he won in 2023 in Östersund in the 1.5 km Sprint and 20 km, confirming him as the king of long distances. For Beppe, the triathlon is not just a summer challenge, but the engine that fuels his endurance on narrow skis: "I love sports that require resilience, they complete me. With the Olympic experience of Paris still in his eyes, Romele now has his sights set on his lifelong dream: Milan Cortina 2026. 'Winning a medal at home is the ultimate goal,' said the Italian cross-country skier. Today in the 10 km cross-country sitting did not go as he would have liked, but the 20 km is still to come.

Palmares:

This is the ranking of the Italian athletes in the race that just ended:

- Giuseppe Romele 4th

Very fast second half of the race for him, but it was not enough. Fourth position for the Bergamasque of the Fiamme Azzurre. Four years ago it was bronze, but there was no Russia.

American Oksana Masters finished in the lead.

Paralympic cross-country skiing has been part of the competition programme since the first Winter Games in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden, in 1976, and continues to evolve through the expansion of categories and the introduction of new technologies. It is the adaptation of traditional cross-country skiing for athletes with physical or visual disabilities.

The male and female athletes are divided into three categories, according to the type of disability and functional capacity:

Ecco gli azzurri e le azzurre in gara oggi, 11 marzo, nella quinta giornata di gare:

- Ore 10.10, sci di fondo paralimpico (sitting): Giuseppe Spatola, Michele Biglione, Giuseppe Romele;

Further reading

Paralympics, immense Azzurri: Bertagnolli in gold, Mazzel, Pelizzari and De Silvestro silver in alpine skiing

10 March 2026