You’ve got to admit when it comes to pure male hotness at the Olympic Games, the gentlemen of water polo are hard to beat. But easy to beat off to. And they seem to do everything in their power to help you on that score. From the tight skimpy swimsuits they wear to the frequency the international teams appear in publications sans swimsuits, you gotta love these guys. And if you don’t think we’re talking world class bodies, consider Terry Schroeder, four-time U.S. Olympic champion, whose hunky build was immortalized in bronze to greet entrants to the L.A. Coliseum for the 1984 Summer Games.

While Olympic swimmers have switched over to full length suits that intensify their bulges but hide all the flesh, water polo players have stuck with the traditional Speedo-style suits, albeit they seem to get smaller every year. It’s just a shame so much of the game is spent with half of their bodies under water. Still, while on deck the boys show it all off. And their uniforms are designed for that purpose. Which caused a few red faces for those who approved Singapore’s trunks in 2010. The bright red suits featured the Singaporean flag’s white crescent moon on the front in what has been described as an inappropriate fashion. Sure the suits highlighted team member’s best feature, but then considering their Asian heritage the really inappropriate thing about the design was how big that crescent moon, which looked more like a big banana, was.

The Test Event for Men’s Water Polo gets underway this weekend in London, though the teams qualifying for the XXX games in July have already been selected. Who will play whom is still up for grabs and will be announced this weekend. As the host nation, Great Britain’s boys will be playing at the Olympics this year. And the U.S. team made the cut again too. Hotties from Greece, Serbia, Spain, and the gold medal winning Hungarian team will all be on display in London in just under tthree months. As will the sexy Italian men. And when it comes to the studs from Italy, the gold medal for hottest bod mixed with boyish charm has got to go to Paride ‘Paris’ Saccoia.

Paride is a 23-year-old striker for Circolo Nautico Posillipo who also plays for his country’s national team, nicknamed Settebello. The Italian men’s water polo team has won 6 Olympic medals, 5 World Championships, 5 World Cup, 10 European Championships medals, and one World League medal, making them one of the most successful men’s water polo teams in the world. They have won a combined six championships in those four competitions, with the World League being the only competition which Italy has yet to win.

Last July at the FINA World Championships held in Shanghai they bested the Serbian team in overtime to win the gold and qualify for a berth at the 2012 Olympics. It was their first world championships gold medal since 1994 and the team is expected to be a major contender for the top spot on the podium in London. “The team is very united, improving game after game and has all the numbers to do well against anyone,” says Paris.

Despite his young age, Paris is considered one of the youthful team’s senior players. Italy boasts of three Olympic medals in men’s water polo and has now tied that record in world championships. His teammates will be looking to Paris to help lead them to victory at the Olympics.

Paride was born in 1989 in Naples. Since he was a young boy, Saccoia has always loved spending time in the water. Whether it’s doing laps in a pool to stay in shape, or playing recreation sports on the lake, Paride has an affinity for aquatic activities. But what most excites the young athlete is playing water polo; he loves the speed, the physical struggle, and the spectacular play of the sport.

The 6’1”, 185lbs. muscular stud has made eleven international appearances with the Italian team, scoring an impressive 103 career goals. He has also participated in 33 European Cup matches, responsible for 71 of the goals his team has scored in that difficult championship. London will be the setting for his first Olympic appearance.

Out of the pool Paride is a business administration major at Naples University and hopes to start his own business someday. His family is his main priority next to his career. The most important person in his life is his sister. Unfortunately, at least until the Olympics, information about him on the internet is as skimpy as the swimsuit he wears. But then with all the hot photos of him floating about, what more do you really need?

[‘The XXX Games’ are a series of posts about hot Olympians, gay competitors – both present and past – and general articles about the 2012 London Olympics of interest to gay men. So, yeah, lots of hot male eye candy. Click the XXX Games graphic below for additional news, stories, and pictures.]