Paolo was born in Zurich in 1970 where he lived for the first 6 years of his life before moving to Pordenone, Italy in 1976. Since he was a child Paolo practiced downhill skiing and ice skating, first as a past-time hobby and later at a professional level. He raced in both practices until he was 27 years old, but consequentially to a number of knee injuries Paolo decided to retire and focus on his lifetime passion, mountains! At the age of 20 Paolo joined the CNSAS (the National Alpine & Cave Rescue Service), something that gave him the possibility of getting to know the world of Speleology in all its forms. This turned into a new passion and sometime later Paolo studied to qualify as a Speleology Guide, affiliated with the Committee of Speleologists of Friuli Venezia Giulia region. When not exploring caves, Paolo dedicates the majority of his free time to alpine ski touring, on snow and ice. He successfully completed several winter ascents in countries like Austria, Switzerland, Slovenia, Germany, France, and New Zealand where, together with a friend, he climbed Mount Aspiring, also referred to as ‘Matterhorn of the South’ (3033m / 10008'), as well as opened new climbing routes, and summited Ruapehu, Ngarahoe and Tongariro volcanoes. In 2003 Paolo joined the Snow Rescue Team on Piste helping injured skiers in tourist resorts, also operating during international championships. On top of this, Paolo is also a volunteer Fire Fighter, a qualified Nordic Walking Instructor, and International Mountain Leader, UIMLA qualified since 2015. Paolo speaks Italian and fluent English.