Parisse plunged into life in Europe with aplomb, scoring his first try for the Azzurri in his side’s win over Canada at the 2003 Rugby World Cup and spending a decorated four years in Treviso with Benetton, lifting two National Championships of Excellence during his stint. Parisse never looked back, taking up residency at the back of the pack for both club and country, kicking off what would become a storied legacy – but he wasn’t to know that back then. Sergio senior made sure to raise his son both a proud Italian and a keen rugby player, with his progeny playing his formative years for the La Plata club.Īt 18 he returned to his fatherland to play for Benetton and soon after the national team, when he was called up by then Azzurri coach John Kirwan for a sink-or-swim appearance in the toughest possible circumstances: an away trip to New Zealand. His father, a winner of the Italian club championship back in the 60s, had moved his family to the Rio de la Plata for work. Parisse was one of the 25 million Italian Argentines as a child, born in the city of La Plata to Italian parents, he was always destined to play rugby. The archetype of Italian rugby, it is nigh-on impossible to imagine Parisse wearing the shirt of any other nation, but it could have all been so different. With an exciting young generation of Italian talent emerging, along with a selection of ever-improving senior figures, Italy have been tipped by many for their strongest showing at Rugby’s Greatest Championship this year, and none will be more desperate to live up to the billing than Parisse.Įntering his 18 th year of international rugby, Parisse has exceeded the status of mainstay to become a mythical figure in the Italian game and will be raring to lead out his side once more as Italy prepare for their Guinness Six Nations opener at Murrayfield on 2 February. The 35-year-old is widely regarded as one of the greatest No.8s of the modern era, and has long been the heartbeat of the Azzuri.
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