Once an Athlete, Always an Athlete: The Making of an Ironman

Mattia Gasperetti, like everyone who works at NASR, has sport in his DNA.
He’s not just one of our team members — he’s our Marketing & Content Manager.
He’s also a friend, a companion on this journey, and one of the very first people who believed in NASR.
Today, we want to share how now it’s our turn to believe in him — and to support his new goal: becoming an IRONMAN.

After years as a competitive alpine skier and summers spent training in running, cycling, and strength work, Mattia decided it was time to close one chapter and dedicate himself to coaching young athletes, staying connected to the world of sport from a different perspective.
But at the end of 2023, the drive to push himself returned — and with it, the challenge of the Ironman 140.6.
A new way to live that competitive fire.

Months of preparation, early morning alarms, countless kilometers on the bike, on the run, and in the water…
Then came May 2025 — when Mattia competed in his very first triathlon: the Ironman 70.3 in Cesenatico.

(For those unfamiliar:
1.9 km swim
90 km bike
21 km run)*

“I didn’t expect anything.
I hadn’t worn a race bib since my days on the ski slopes.
But that day in Cesenatico, I felt that fire again.
Under 5 hours in my first Ironman 70.3 — I never expected it.”

Mattia finished third in his age group… and with a bit of luck, even qualified for the Challenge World Championshipsin his category.

"It was the first step — a challenge against myself.
I felt it more in my head than in my legs."

Mattia doesn’t race for the podium.
He races to feel something he knows well: that moment when everything hurts, but you keep going.
When it’s not about where you finish — it’s about who you are when you finish.

Now, Mattia has chosen to share this adventure. And we’re right there with him.
We support him the way we know best: with our technology, our style, and our identity.

Throughout his months of preparation and during the two key races — Ironman 70.3 Cesenatico and Ironman 140.6 Barcelona — Mattia will wear a selection of our technical apparel: XT Collection, Road Bike Collection, and a custom triathlon suit designed especially for him.

It’s our way of saying: you are not alone. We’re with you — every last meter of the way.

"Now it’s all about Barcelona.
Twice the distance. Twice the pain. Twice the emotion.
But I’ve got twice the determination."

Welcome to #RoadToBarcelona, the NASR docu-series.

Follow it on our blog, on social media, and in Mattia’s own stories.