The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina have produced a story straight out of a rock and roll fantasy. Dominik Paris, the frontman of the Italian groove metal band Rise of Voltage, has officially claimed a bronze medal in the men’s downhill skiing event.
Competing on home turf this past Saturday (February 7), the 36-year-old speed specialist finally reached the Olympic podium after five attempts. While Switzerland’s Franjo von Allmen took the gold and Paris‘ teammate Giovanni Franzoni secured the silver, Paris‘ third-place finish was a monumental capstone to a distinguished career. At 36, he is now the second-oldest athlete to ever medal in the discipline.
Standing at the bottom of the Stelvio slope in Cortina, Paris reflected on the venue and the support from the local fans.
“It’s a beautiful, tough mountain,” Paris told Midland Reporter Telegram. “It’s great to have this home crowd here.”
Despite having 24 World Cup victories and a 2019 super-G world championship under his belt, Olympic glory had notoriously eluded the Italian star until now.
“I’ve had a nice career so far,” Paris told. “Having this success on this hill means a lot. The World Cup is different. The Olympics is really special — you never know what’s going to happen. I tried so hard at the other Olympic Games when I was in good shape and I was young and I had the power.”
When he isn’t hurtling down icy mountains at breakneck speeds, Paris channels his aggression into music. Since 2017, he has served as the lead vocalist for Rise of Voltage, a metal outfit that includes his brother Lukas Paris on guitar, bassist Frank Pichler, and drummer Florian Schwienbacher.
The band has released two studio albums to date: their 2018 debut Time and the heavier, more technical 2024 follow-up Escape.
Speaking to ESPN Originals, Paris explained that his love for heavy music predates his professional skiing fame.
“The passion started very early, 14 years old, It’s just a passion and we put together a band and we tried have some gigs in the summer time.”
However, the athlete confessed that performing live brings a different kind of pressure than competing in the Olympics.
“It’s really different to be onstage with the band. It’s not easy to staying one hour onstage screaming out. For me, it’s more easier to and I’m not that nervous when I do a ski race, because I know what I have to do,” he said.
When asked to rate his talents, Paris offered a humble assessment to the Midland Reporter Telegram:
“I’m, for sure, a better skier, but if you listen to metal, I’m not so bad.”
With the Olympics ongoing, Rise of Voltage has been on a brief hiatus, but they are scheduled to return to the festival circuit this summer. The band is booked for the Alpen Flair festival in June, sharing the bill with acts like Ice Nine Kills. Later in the summer, they will play the Mannried Open Air (August 13-16) and Switzerland’s Teffli Rally (August 14-15), performing alongside Wolfmother and Steve N’ Seagulls.
