Arianna and Pietro Sighel: Italy's short track speed skating siblings carving own path after famous father

Italy's short track speed skating siblings Arianna Sighel and Pietro Sighel can vouch for family ties in sport, and speed skating at an Olympic Winter Games.

Their father Roberto Sighel is a five-time Olympian (Calgary 1988 – Salt Lake City 2002), world champion in 1992, former world record holder and a legend of speed skating in Italy.

Making their Winter Olympic debuts at Beijing 2022, Arianna and Pietro are also now Olympians, but instead of the longer track of speed skating, the pair from Trento favoured the short track.

And 22-year-old Pietro has already achieved something his dad couldn’t, winning a medal at an Olympic Games with his silver in the Mixed Team Relay on 5 February, behind People’s Republic of China.

"At the end Pietro Sighel was pretty amazing," Italian icon Arianna Fontana said of her teammate after she secured a record ninth Olympic short track medal.

"He was catching up with the Chinese skater (Wu Dajing), and I thought he got it. It was pretty close. It was amazing watching him fight for a gold medal."

Pietro Sighel was just five hundredths of a second behind Wu and is competing again at Beijing 2022 in Men’s 5000m Relay and Men’s 1000m.

Older sister Arianna Sighel, 25, is scheduled to race in the Women’s 3000m Relay which starts on Wednesday 9 February.

Taught by her father, she learned to skate on a frozen lake in Baselga di Pine, in the Trentino region, at age three.

It’s a similar tale for younger brother Pietro, who also learned to skate in Baselga di Pine, where the Italian national speed skating team is now based and will be home to one of the venues of the Olympic Winter Games Milano-Cortina 2026.

Arianna says she chose short track herself because there is more adrenaline in it and she found the events more exciting than her father’s speed skating.

The lessons from their dad are not lost, however, with Pietro telling the International Skating Federation, ISU: “If you are good on the straights in long track it’s easier to be good on the straights in short track, even if they are shorter you can improve your speed. You learn to skate relaxed by watching long track."

As well as their father and also grandfather Mario Sighel, who was a national-level skater in Italy during the 1950s and 1960s, both list Netherlands’ five-time Olympian Sven Kramer as an idol.

Of course they have each other, too, with Arianna labelling her brother as a massive influence in her career.

"He inspires me every day. He is one of the best motivators I have in my life. He’s always trying to make me feel comfortable with my skating, with my races. At home he also helps me if I am stressed or worried about something, like COVID," she told ISU in 2021.

While there is still plenty to play out for the Sighels at Beijing 2022 and the family legacy has a new chapter written, the next Olympic Winter Games is Milano-Cortina 2026.

For the pair born in Trento, it is looking like a massive few years for them and their also famous father Roberto, who now works as a photographer for the Italian Ice Sports Federation.

“He’s really involved. He’s our best support, our first fan," Arianna has said.

Keep up with all the action in our Live Blog updates throughout Beijing 2022, here.