Paralympian and Outdoor Enthusiast Andrea Lanfri

Q&A with Andrea Lanfri of Italy, Outdoor Enthusiast....and Paralympian

Q1: What is your lifestyle like?

A1:  Adventures out the ordinary. For those who do not know me, let me introduce myself: I am Andrea Lanfri born in Lucca (Italy) on November 26, 1986. I have always been a lover of the mountains and with the instinct to overcome all limits, even when it was only about mental barriers. Everything changed in 2015 when a bout of fulminant meningitis with meningococcal sepsis upset my plans.  I found myself reprogramming my life, facing everyday life without my legs and seven fingers. The disease, however, has not affected my will to live and the strength of mind that distinguish me. As a former Paralympic Athlete of the Italian National Team, climber and mountaineer, I have conquered Italian records and titles, two European bronzes and a world silver as well as returning to high altitude mountaineering. Today, day after day, my days are more and more varied: in the morning training on a bicycle, in the afternoon running or going to the mountains. It goes without saying that I follow a healthy and very active lifestyle, this to better prepare myself for the next adventure that is on my list!

Q2: Why do you choose to live this lifestyle?

A2:  Since I was a child I have been a great mountain lover, I like everything: from trekking to climbing, to mountaineering. While I was in the hospital, climbing the most difficult summit that can be found, I was strongly convinced that one day I would go back to doing the same things as before. It was a very long and painful period and after waking up from a coma, and following the various amputations, a great desire to travel and a great desire to explore, a desire without reason or logic, but only instinct, a personal challenge against the bacterium that wanted to stop me and give a stop to my life, but in the end I did the opposite by fully dedicating myself to my new life as an adventurer, I take up increasingly ambitious challenges: by doing so I hope to instill motivation and courage in those who look at me, because you have to have confidence in your own abilities and potential.

Q3: What made you start adventuring?

A3:  Every time I design a new business, the ambition is always the same: to overcome my limits, those that seem insurmountable. I want to prove to myself that I can do it, I want to show everyone that passion can help you overcome any obstacle, if you really want it. Nobody ever goes that far in my condition. The love I have for nature and its beauty leave room for anything else that can prevent me from adventuring! 

Q4: Advice for someone who wants to take part in more outdoor adventures?

A4:  Now that I no longer have my legs I always think big! The bacterium wanted to take away my passion and love for the mountains but has only risen to make it even stronger and more intense. A long list of new achievements awaits me, higher and higher! For me, the best medicine has been life in the open area, love and passion for the mountains have made everything more beautiful and easier for me!

www.andrealanfri.com
Instagram: @lanfri_andrea
Facebook: @Andrea Lanfri

Also in Stories