When Ian Camilleri became a father eight years ago, like many new parents, he felt overwhelmed and lost.
He resorted to sports, something he had not done in 20 years, building up enough stamina to help him complete an ultramarathon dubbed the toughest footrace on earth.
Before embarking on the marathon, which is the equivalent of nearly six marathons in stifling desert heat reaching 50°C, the toughest challenge Camilleri had ever completed was a half ironman.
But as he battled sand dunes, blisters on his feet and his own mind telling him to give up, it was the thought of his own family waiting for him at home that helped him pull through the Marathon des Sables.
This year’s Marathon des Sables in Morocco saw participants walk or run 250km in stifling heat.The 40-year-old placed 145th of the 765 who crossed the finish line. Some 1,305 people had enrolled for the 37th edition of the marathon.
“I was around 11 years old when I first heard of the MDS. I vividly recall watching news features about it because an Italian participant [Mauro Prosperi] had disappeared and survived in the Sahara, on his own, for nine days.
“As I child, I didn’t really understand the seriousness of his disappearance – on the contrary, I thought it was a great adventure… and that’s when I promised myself I would do it when I grow up.
“That promise nagged me for 30 years. I wanted to do something extreme, and it was either a full Ironman or the MDS. One day I met a German guy who told me, ‘the choice is simple: ask yourself which one scares you the most? And you’ll have the answer'.”
Although very active as a child, Camilleri only picked up sports again a few years ago, when he faced the mental challenges of fatherhood.
“I felt lost, so I turned to sports and I soon realised that the high one gets from physical activity was better than the high one gets from partying.
"You can easily get addicted to physical activity and the best thing about it is that there are no negative repercussions as with drinking or substance abuse.”
Under the guidance of Kevin Zammit, he spent six months training for the MDS.
Camilleri missed out on spending time with his two daughters for whole weekends, which he spent camping in a bid to get used to sleeping uncomfortably and running on tired legs.
Camilleri missed basic amenities such as a chair and a bed, as he slept with other participants in tents throughout the marathon. Photos provided by Ian Camilleri‘I couldn’t go home to my daughters without a medal’
But nothing prepared him for the real deal.
Participants were only briefed, for the first time, about the 250km trail while on a bus heading to the starting point.
In the Sahara, Ian Camilleri and fellow participants were allowed no chairs, no beds and no cookers.For the first two nights, they got acquainted with the desert heat and the tents they would sleep in for six nights during the marathon.
“We were back to basics – no chairs, no beds, no toilets, no showers, no cookers, no mobile reception…
“Once we set off, we could only carry necessities such as a compass, a mirror, a sleeping bag, food for the whole week and water.
“Sometimes it was so hot that none of us ‘wasted’ water on showering – we needed it to keep hydrated.”
The first three days were the worst.
“On the first day, we were so excited that we set off running, but our body was in shock. I ran, puked, continued running…
Ian Camilleri could not return home to his daughters without a medal."I had gastric issues on the first night and woke up dehydrated for the second round which included over 30km of elevations on sand dunes.
“By the second day, I was close to giving up. People were passing out and taken off the track by helicopters. I pushed myself as I didn’t want it to be game over.
“By the third day, I hated it. I asked myself: what did I get myself into? This is bigger than me.
"But I knew I couldn’t go home to my daughters without a medal, and I was determined to cross the finish line.”
Participants of the Marathon des Sables, which is the equivalent of nearly six marathons in stifling desert heat reaching 50°C. Photo: Ian Camilleri'Our body is much stronger than our mind'
The best thing about the whole experience, Camilleri believes, is the family he found in fellow participants, and those he shared a tent with every night.
By the fourth and fifth days, Camilleri was on a high, counting participants as he ran past them.
“I couldn’t stop running. I walked and ran for 17 hours and made it with the first 200. During the last lap on the sixth day, I kept thinking: our body is much stronger than our mind.”
Last week, even while crossing the finish line, Camilleri was sure he would never put himself through the ordeal again.
But just a few days later, he is already thinking of giving it another go… maybe in five years’ time.
A long stretch involved several sand dunes. Photo: Ian Camilleri