Paolo Pizzo

Sport: Fencing

Nation: Italy

DOB: April 4, 1983

Career Highlights: Ranked second in the world, Pizzo won the individual gold medal at the world championships in 2011, qualifying him for London and setting him up as a favorite to take gold as part of a powerful Italian team. He is making his first Olympic appearance, marking the culmination of a long journey from head cancer - diagnosed when he was just 13. Pizzo rebounded to become one of the world's premier fencers, achieving the top world ranking in epee by the end of the 2010-11 season.

Olympic History: None