Daniele Cassioli is much more than a champion: he is a true global icon of Paralympic sport. Born blind, this Italian athlete has achieved what many thought impossible. He is the most decorated water skier in the history of adapted sports, with more than 25 world championships and an impressive list of international records. But his passion for snow has also led him to excel in alpine skiing, a discipline in which he has achieved significant success in national and international championships, once again demonstrating his ability to overcome adversity and his absolute dedication to sport.
At I Love Ski, we had the honor of conducting an exclusive interview with Daniele Cassioli, where the champion shares with us his career in adapted skiing, both water and alpine, and talks about his commitment to inclusion, accessibility, and motivating new generations. We invite you to discover his story firsthand in a conversation full of inspiration, effort, and passion for the sport.
Daniele, you are an extraordinary athlete with an incredible track record in water skiing. How did you get into alpine skiing and what inspired you to take it up as a child?
In my life, alpine skiing came first and then water skiing.
I was lucky to have two parents who encouraged me to play sports from an early age. They were the ones who took me to the mountains for the first time, and everything else was thanks to the magic of sport and the wonderful energy of the Verbanese Sciatori Ciechi (Verbania Blind Skiers Group).
Skiing is a sport that requires a lot of trust in your guide. How is your relationship with the guides at the Verbanese Sciatori Ciechi Group?
You’re right, trust is a fundamental element, it’s the essential ingredient for skiing, and blindness has forced me to train it.
It’s no coincidence that many companies now call me to experience the power of trust with me, as a value and as a skill.
Going back to your question, the relationship with the guides in the group is incredible! Many of them have seen me grow up and they are all special people, companions on the slopes and friends during the time we spend together.
What’s more, they have extraordinary experience; it’s not easy to be a very good skier and be able to guide a blind person down slopes of varying difficulty.
You have practiced many sports in your life: what makes alpine skiing special for you?
Without a doubt, the feeling of freedom and possibility.
Sometimes I find it easier to ski down a kilometer-long black slope than to walk 200 meters in the city with my white cane.
I also love knowing how to do something that even sighted people have to work hard at for a long time to become good at.
The Verbanese Sciatori Ciechi group works to bring blind people closer to the mountains. What do you think is the greatest value of this experience?
I think there are many added values: the pleasure of sport, the birth of new and valuable friendships, the chance to get out of the house and do something enjoyable, travel and discover new places, and then be able to talk about it afterwards.
Often, experiencing things in general also means expanding the baggage of things you can share with others.
When I was at school, for example, after a weekend in the mountains, I would tell my classmates that I had been skiing and they would ask me, intrigued, how it had gone.
This is another wonderful aspect: the beauty of those moments spreads and also benefits everyday life.
In your career, you have often spoken about the importance of sport in overcoming your own limits. What lessons have you learned from skiing that you have applied to your life?
Without a doubt, I have learned confidence and how much confidence is a catalyst for performance and significantly improves the quality of relationships.
I’ve also learned how nice it is to improve ourselves: we often compare ourselves to others, and luckily, sometimes I couldn’t look at them.
So feeling that Daniele was always a little better than himself, season after season, gave me a lot of self-esteem.
Another important thing I’ve learned from skiing is that the real goal isn’t to stop being afraid, but to start being brave.
You are also an educator and motivator: how can we encourage more blind children to try skiing and other sports?
I think it is essential to raise the level of culture and awareness among adults on this issue. I am referring to parents, teachers, therapists, and doctors.
The question to ask yourself is: do I see the disabled person first or the child?
If I see the child first, then it’s more natural to suggest lots of sports, just like you would with a child of the same age without a disability.
That’s why I founded Real Eyes Sport, an association in Italy that connects people with disabilities with movement, fun, and sports.
We invest a lot in social media communication, for example, but that’s not all.
Seeing a child “similar” to my son playing sports and having fun is an important incentive to decide to take him out of the house to have fun.
The other fundamental aspect is to develop and enhance skills in the world of grassroots sports.
We are rightly fascinated and attracted by the power of the Paralympic Games, but at the same time there are few sports clubs and welcoming environments for those who want to practice sports and have a disability.
Raising the level of competition can facilitate the process of getting families with disabilities involved in sports, which would undoubtedly help to generate even more motivation.
Looking ahead, do you have any projects related to skiing or the mountains in mind?
Of course.
We are collaborating very well between Real Eyes Sport and the group of blind skiers in Verbania, and now some of the children who started skiing have joined the group and have become real passionate skiers.
In general, we are increasing the number of summer and winter camps to ensure that our members have plenty of options and, as far as the mountains are concerned, that they can enjoy them in both winter and summer.
The other big step, as founder of the association, will be to prepare ourselves to welcome other disabilities.
This will allow us to guarantee all children, regardless of their initial condition, that there is a place for them where they can practice sport.
