Pioneer Nadir Maguet
Mountain Runner and Ski Mountaineer
2019 European Skyrunning Champion
Story by Katie Grossman
Photography by Damiano Levati / Storyteller Labs, Instagram: @storytellerlabs
One sunny October morning, a young Italian ski mountaineer beat out the best mountain runners on the planet to win the Kilomètre Vertical De Fully - one of the most difficult vertical races in existence. While the feat may have surprised the world, it made perfect sense to the athlete. For Nadir Maguet, everything is connected. It has to be.
Whether he’s charging a line on skis or on foot, Nadir has his mindset dialed in. “Before a race, I try to mentally isolate myself from everyone else, from everything around me, so that I can concentrate on the race, the course, my running tactics, without being influenced by the outside world.” With his all-in approach, a solid connection of mind and body is critical.
In the sport of mountain running, the vertical kilometer is its own animal and the Fully course might be the beast of them all. Boasting an average grade of over 50%, it’s so steep that runners are required to wear a helmet. This is exactly the kind of challenge Nadir prefers, as it allows him to push his limits more purely than in a longer race, where there always needs to be a certain margin of effort in reserve. “When I’m feeling at my peak exhaustion in the middle of a vertical race, I know that this is the exact moment when my mental strength and determination are the factors that will help me win.”
Nadir has another interesting pre-race ritual. He eats the game meat he hunts behind his home with his grandfather. One can’t help but feel the evolutionary significance here and the tie to the very roots of why we, as a species, run. His awareness and connection to his purpose drives his greatest ambitions.
Most recently, Nadir set a new standard on the Gran Paradiso – a record that has stood for 25 years. At 4,061 meters, it’s the tallest mountain located solely in Italy and therefore a worthy and meaningful prize for the Aosta Valley native. The route is a mountaineering adventure traditionally completed in 1.5 days, with climbers taking time to acclimatize on the way up. He posted a blistering 1 hour and 29 minute 2,200m ascent, with 2:02:32 for the round-trip.
Nadir’s connection to the land is important both figuratively and literally. Whether it’s covered snow or dirt, he knows his path to success demands a melding not only of the mind and body, but the body and environment.“In my sport, having the right equipment allows me to be at one with the terrain so that there are no filters between me and what I am doing. When I tighten the BOA Fit System, I can feel the shoe wrapping around my foot, creating a great harmony.” This connection between athlete, equipment, and environment is essential in allowing the one between athlete and self to thrive.
Nadir Maguet is certainly thriving.
Nadir dials in to the La Sportiva VK BOA for maximum uphill performance. Designed for vertical running and powered by the BOA Fit System, the upper wraps the foot from medial to lateral – improving agility and speed to provide a fast, effortless, precision fit.