“My dad has run the Marathon des Sables four times. This year, I finally joined him.”
A shared challenge brought Maia and Joe Mountain not only to the Sahara but also to a closer father-daughter relationship.
“There’s a photo of me at the finish line. I’m looking at my dad and I’m just laughing. Not because it’s funny, but because I genuinely can’t believe we just did that together.”
Maia and Joe Mountain at the finish of the Marathon des Sables
Maia Mountain, 22, who grew up in the Algarve, completed the 2026 Marathon des Sables in April. She ran every step of the 270km, seven-day race across the Sahara Desert alongside her father, Joe.
For Joe, it was his fourth time taking on the race. For Maia, it was her first.
They finished side by side, placing 195th overall out of 1,435 competitors, with Maia the first British woman to cross the line. Joe was also the top British finisher in the over-50 category, placing first out of 57 competitors.
“I came into this with the overconfidence of someone who doesn’t quite know what they’ve signed up for,” Maia says. “My dad came in with a very healthy respect for what the desert does to you. His experience stopped me making every classic mistake. My excitement probably reminded him to enjoy it.”
Their training unfolded on different continents, shaped by whatever each had around them.
Joe, based in Portugal, trained on the beaches of the Algarve, building the muscle memory the desert demands. Maia, living and working in Kigali, Rwanda on a one-year placement, had no sand — but did have mountains.
“Rwanda gave me relentless hills. I peaked at 135km in a single week in January, which included winning a 110km mountain ultra.”
What they shared, despite the distance, was consistency.
“We both took up Pilates and yoga at the same time,” Maia says. “That became our shared language during training — comparing notes, checking in on each other. It kept us connected even when we were thousands of miles apart.”
On the course, their dynamic shifted naturally.
“He knew when to push me and when to say nothing,” Maia says. “I think I gave him energy on the days he needed it.”
They developed small rituals along the way — a high five at every kilometre, gratitude for the wind no matter which direction it came from.
Then came Day Four — the “Long Day” — a 100km stage and the most demanding part of the race.
“Somewhere between kilometre 50 and 60 I was in serious pain,” Maia says. “My dad didn’t try to fix it. He just stayed with me.” By kilometre 60, it had passed.
They pushed on, eventually running the final kilometres through the dunes together.
“We looked at each other and didn’t need to say anything,” Maia says. “That moment is the whole point.”
For both father and daughter, the race will be remembered for something less tangible than their fantastic result.
“What I’ll remember is what this challenge did for our relationship,” Maia says. “You can’t manufacture that kind of closeness. You have to earn it.”
“Find something that scares you both a little,” she adds. “Train for it together, even if you’re not in the same place. The race almost doesn’t matter. It’s the year that leads up to it.”
Joe agrees. “Running this race with Maia has been the privilege of my life,” he says. “The result matters, but the experience we shared matters far more.”
Joe and Maia completed the Marathon des Sables in support of Medical Aid for Palestinians, raising more than £35,000 for the charity.
A little bit more about Maia Mountain:
Maia only started running a few years ago. While in Rwanda, where she is on a placement in the carbon finance sector, she has been active in encouraging local women to get into running. As part of her participation in the Rwanda Ultra 110km, Maia persuaded the organisers to provide low cost places for local runners.