Beyond Human Potential is the project that, on March 22, 2026, led Michel Roccati, a paraplegic athlete with a complete spinal cord injury, to ski standing independently for 100 meters. The “miracle” happened in Folgaria on the Alpe Cimbra and is the result of an initiative that marked a result never achieved before in adaptive skiing. A milestone that comes at the end of months of research, testing, and field development, where technology, biomechanics, and neuroscience have integrated to redefine the limits of human movement on snow. Leading this path is Tommaso Balasso, an Italian sports professional with extensive experience in the Paralympic and inclusion world through outdoor activities, as well as the project manager of Beyond Human Potential, who, together with a multidisciplinary team, has transformed an intuition born almost by chance into one of the most advanced experiments today in adaptive sports.
In this interview, he tells how Beyond Human Potential was born, what is behind the technology that made this feat possible, and why, now more than ever, talking about “limits” in sports needs to be completely rewritten. How was the Beyond Human Potential project born? Among various activities, I also do volunteer work. A year and a half ago, here in the province of Vicenza, where I live, I opened Open Space, an accessible gym. Last year I came up with a format called Open Talks and one of the guests I decided to invite for the first edition was Michel Rocati, whom I followed on social media because he had undergone this experimental intervention and his story intrigued me a lot. The only “exchange” I had to convince him to come to my event, in addition to the Friday evening, was to offer him a snow experience on Saturday morning. He accepted willingly. When I sent him images of the monoski, the equipment normally used for that type of disability, his response was: “Maybe we didn’t understand each other, I want to ski standing.” What was your reaction to this request? Obviously, it left me very perplexed because in 24 years that I have been working in this sector, thinking of making a person with a complete spinal cord injury like his ski was something science fiction, or at least very imaginative. I proposed a French tool that we had, which is usually used for other disabilities, and he accepted: so he joined us for the weekend. On Saturday morning, we managed to make him ski, with the support of a ski instructor from the school, and on Monday Michel told me: “I really enjoyed skiing, I would like you to teach me.” And from there Beyond Human Potential was born. We put together a group of people with very high professionalism such as engineers, researchers, neuroscientists who decided to join the project. I dedicated all my free time to carry on this project. 
Let’s talk about the machine: how was it developed? The machine is one of the most interesting things. Actually, it originates from that French tool I mentioned earlier, called Go2Ski, invented about twenty years ago by a French ski instructor. From there, we started, then we revolutionized everything. Today we are at the third evolution and we are already thinking about a fourth. We modified the movements of the equipment based on the response we wanted to give to Michel’s physicality and biomechanics. Then we inserted a braking system similar to that of a bicycle, which activates ski mountaineering crampons. In the latest version, we added two “foils,” which are external skis compared to the ones Michel wears. They are used to keep him balanced: if he leans to one side, these touch the snow and support him. How much work is behind this project? A lot. It is the result of hours and hours of design, but also manual work: welding, carpentry, processing done directly in Schio, where I am. It is a project within the project: there is not only the idea of making Michel ski, but also that of creating a team that works on something so big. If we were to quantify the hours, materials, and consultations, we would talk about very significant figures. What role did Nordica play? My relationship with Nordica dates back a long time. I have been an ambassador for the brand since I was competing: I have participated in two Paralympic Games as a guide, winning five medals, including the gold in Turin 2006, and even then I used Nordica boots. It was one of the first companies to believe in the Italian Paralympic movement and provide materials to athletes. That’s why it was natural to think of them for the project, and it was also quite easy to involve them: I presented the idea and they were immediately available. In particular, the HF boot was fundamental: it has a rear entry which, for Michel’s situation, is a great advantage. Furthermore, when Michel sits down, the rear opening avoids pressure on the tibia, reducing the risk of injuries. It was a very successful choice, and I am proud of it.
