Luigi Di Paolo — 49 Year Old Goalkeeper with the Soul of a Young Player

Waterpolista.com brings motivating news straight from CW Sant Josep. Luigi Di Paolo is the Neapolitan goalkeeper who arrived in Ibiza eight years ago. Thanks to CW Sant Josep, he still plays as a young man at 49 years old. He was one of the key players in the Balearic League and still plays with full capacity!

Historically, CW Sant Josep had their first water polo season quite early. The Ibiza team didn’t only achieved the title of champion of the Balearic League (only two years after entering the official competition) but also debuted in Spanish Championship. Their progress since had a remarkable impact on water polo.

Led by Madrid’s Diego Barturen, the team has been striving greatly. Apart from other great players, there is one that caught our attention — and he guards the goal.

Age doesn’t matter

One of the secrets of these successes lies in the goal, rather, in front of the goal. Veteran Italian goalkeeper Luigi Di Paolo is in charge of guarding the Balearic goal. He is in that position since September, even though he arrived in Ibiza eight years ago, coming from Naples.

In Naples, he started his career when he was only eight years old, but he spent his best years in the Italian A1 League. His love for the sport motivated him to push the boundaries and always give something little extra in this project he defines as “ambitious”.

At the age of 49, Di Paolo has not lost his enthusiasm for water polo and that keeps him active. The desire to play and to be the leading character had allowed him to be effective in front of the net.

“I have regained the love for water polo thanks to my new team, who is like my family now,” commented Di Paolo who is, at the moment, the oldest player in the national competition.

His teammates are proud of him and recognize him as a special kind of leader. They said that it is an award itself just to have an opportunity to play with Di Paolo. They also say he is one of the reasons things are going well in Sant Josep.

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