PIAMPIANO SARAH PROOF
IRONMAN CHAMPION PROOF
SARAH PIAMPIANO
RISES IN RESIDENTIAL
REAL ESTATE
You name it. Sarah Piampiano has conquered it. Pounding the pavement as a runner, swimming miles in open water, and tackling tough courses on the open road as a seasoned cyclist come easily to this Ironman contender. She knows how to push through pain, fight through challenges, and overcome obstacles with grit and grace.
“I’m not afraid to work hard,” she says. A former professional athlete, Sarah knows how to win. For a decade, she competed around the world in Ironman and half-Ironman competitions. In total, she has won 11 Ironman Championships, even holding the third-fastest time ever for an American woman for the Ironman distance. Not to mention finishing 7th at the Ironman World Championships.
“It was one of the most amazing privileges of my life,” says Sarah of her competitive days. She learned the mental techniques to keep on going. “I would tell myself to just do one more mile and then I could stop,” she says. “But I knew I would never stop.” Running was a mental game. Breaking it down into small pieces made the miles manageable.
PROOF
“I never quit a race,” she says with pride.
A STRONG CONSTITUTION
Originally from Maine, Sarah grew up as the youngest and only girl among two older brothers. Raised in a cabin on a lake and surrounded by 50 acres of land, Sarah’s childhood was full of adventure.
“I was a tough little kid,” she recalls. Encouraged by her ardent feminist mother, Sarah believed she could do whatever the boys were doing—and be just as good, if not better. Her athleticism flourished in Maine’s great outdoors, where she ran through the woods, rode bikes, and embraced the freedom to create her own adventures. Skiing, running, soccer, softball, and swimming—Sarah excelled in every sport she tried. By high school, she focused on running and skiing, attending a ski academy with dreams of joining the U.S. National Ski Team. Although she didn’t make the team, she became a nationally ranked runner and went on to compete in Division 1 ski racing and cross-country running in college.
FROM FINANCES TO FITNESS
After graduating, Sarah pursued a career in finance, starting as an administrative assistant in an investment bank in San Francisco. With hard work and determination, she quickly moved up to the trading floor. Over the years, she took on various roles, from equity capital markets to derivatives trading with Morgan Stanley, and eventually, mergers and acquisitions in New York City. Working 120-hour weeks and thriving in the rigorous
demands of investment banking, Sarah was on track to become a managing director. But then, she discovered her love of fitness with triathlons.
On a bet, Sarah entered a triathlon and instantly fell in love with the sport. “It brought back the dream of going to the Olympics and being a professional athlete,” she says. She began training seriously, eventually reducing her work hours to focus on her athletic pursuits. After a year, she made a bold decision: she left her finance job, sold her apartment in NYC, and moved to California to race and train full-time as a professional athlete. For the next decade, Sarah traveled the world, competing at the highest level and achieving remarkable success in the sport.
“You have one life to live,” she points out. “You have to go after and do the things that scare you but bring you the most joy.” Being a professional athlete was risky, but very rewarding.
“I’ve raced in some of the most incredible places including in China, Kazakhstan, throughout South America and Europe and I’ve met the most incredible people,” she smiles. “Sometimes I have to pinch myself.”
PIVOTING WITH THE PANDEMIC
When the pandemic hit, Sarah wasn’t ready to retire from professional sports, but she knew that her body wouldn’t allow her to compete indefinitely. Pregnant with her son Harrison, she started thinking about her next career move. Real estate kept coming up in conversations and people told her she would be great at
it. Initially dismissive, Sarah eventually realized that the qualities that made her a successful athlete—hard work, determination, and a willingness to take risks—could translate well into real estate.
In April 2022, Sarah got her real estate license and dove into the Boulder, Colorado market, where she and her husband, Michael, had recently relocated. The transition was challenging.
“Real estate has been harder than I imagined,” she says. “I thought if I put my head down and applied the same work ethic to real estate that I did to professional athletics success would come quickly. I can outwork anyone, but hard work doesn’t always translate into immediate success, and I should have known that. I was coming into a new state and didn’t know anyone. I certainly have connections from the triathlon world, but I quickly realized I needed to build a whole new network and sphere of influence. I underestimated the amount of time that would take.”
Despite the challenges, Sarah embraced the hustle. She held open houses, hosting 2-3 every weekend to build her business. She joined RISE, an elite group of runners, and organizes 10-12 events each year in her neighborhood. Balancing her career with motherhood and family life, Sarah is driven by her passion for real estate and her desire to create the business she envisions.
Now she is excelling in real estate at 8Z Real Estate. She relies on her days as a triathlon
competitor to help her be the best she can be. “When I was racing, my coach would tell me, ‘You can’t focus on the outcome; you have to focus on the process.’ That’s extremely relevant for real estate. I try to stay true to the process and really do well by my clients. I also try to think about and do the things in my business that bring me joy. You can do real estate in so many different ways, but, for me, being true and authentic is super important.”
Sarah gives real estate her all, waking up at 4:30 and doing everything she can to build a business. Once she puts her son down, she goes back to work. “There’s a lot of work to do to get to where I want to go,” she says.
She is not afraid to set big goals, even if it takes longer to achieve them. “My big, lofty goal is to be the number one agent in the Denver metro area in five years,” she says. “I’m okay with making really big goals and not achieving them in the time that I want. Whether it takes me five or ten years, that’s where I want to be.”
RELAXING AND UNWINDING
When not working, Sarah takes time to crush calories and reduce stress by running and biking six days a week. “I’m out the door by 5:30,” she says.
She also enjoys skiing, camping, and entertaining friends and family. “I have people come over three times a week,” she smiles.
She is also happily married to Michael, who has embraced and accepted her for being the strong
woman she is. “He was the first relationship where I felt he was completely supportive of me being the strong independent female that I am. He’s an incredible supporter of mine,” she shares. Even during her triathlon training days, where she was gone 36 weeks out of the year, Michael supported her.
FINAL THOUGHTS
“I want to be known for living life to the fullest,” concludes Sarah. “In doing that, I want to inspire other people to take chances and take risks in life that they otherwise wouldn’t.” Sarah has lived her life by taking risks, embracing adventure, and going the extra mile. The future is bright for this Rising Star, who is just getting started.
SARAH PIAMPIANO
