On the highest podium in the world, in the adrenaline-filled silence that precedes the winner's announcement, Alessandro Manfredi holds a flag that speaks of a life choice: the Quattro Mori. He raises it when his name echoes through the room as the 2025 DFAC World Champion – Masters category. It is the culmination of a journey that began over fifty years ago in Bergamo, passed through Milan, St. Moritz, the Costa Smeralda, and landed where he now calls home: Sardinia .
Born in 1969, Manfredi has been immersed in sports since he was six. Soccer, judo, skiing, canoeing: a collection of disciplines that have tempered his body and method, forging the dedication he now brings to his work as a wellness coach. For years, he has trained celebrities in Milan's most exclusive clubs—from Simona Ventura to Martina Colombari, from Anna Oxa to Dolce & Gabbana—and managed the fitness clubs of five-star hotels on the Costa Smeralda and in Saint Moritz.
An elite CV, but with one fixed point: "sport as a lifestyle, not as artifice."
For fifteen years, Manfredi has competed in Natural Bodybuilding, federations where doping is not only banned, but fought with strict controls throughout the year.
"Mine," he often says, "has always been a consistent choice: to win, yes, but with respect for the body. The only shortcut I accept is hard work." And it is with this credo that he has built his palmarès: two Italian titles, a World Championship in Miami in 2014, podiums in Boston, Los Angeles, and New York. Then, after a four-year hiatus, he returns. At 56. In September, he returns to compete in the FCFN in Vicenza and immediately wins the Masters category. Two weeks later, in Bologna, he takes the Italian FCFN title, the overall title, and the Pro Card. In October, in Germany, he also wins the European DFAC title. Then November arrives and he flies to Houston, Texas, where he accomplishes the feat. He is World Champion. Again. At 56.
But this time the triumph has a different flavor. Three years ago, Manfredi left the "Continent" for good to settle in Cagliari . "Sardinia changed me," he says. "Here, nature speaks to you, the sea recharges you, the people welcome you. This land has restored my balance and given me the strength to get back to the top." Between training on the rugged coastline, windy days, and a simple, authentic diet, his preparation found the perfect habitat. And so, when he raised the flag with the Quattro Mori in Houston, it was to pay homage to Sardinia, but also to emphasize his identity.
