Sports
Fernanda Maciel: Rising to the Top of World Trail Running
The ultramarathoner details her international victories and debunks the myth that Brazilian runners must live in Europe.
In a conversation on XTREMMA Sports, Fernanda Maciel reflects on her first international races and her journey to podium finishes at Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc. The athlete also shares insights into elite preparation and explains why lacking high mountains at home is no excuse not to win abroad.
The transition from adventure racing to mountain ultramarathons was never part of a calculated plan for Fernanda Maciel. The Minas Gerais native, who already used running for commuting and daily fitness, began competing in international races at the invitation of brands and event organizers while balancing athletics with a career in law. Her first major sign of natural aptitude for the sport came in New Zealand, where she clocked 1:28 in a mountain half-marathon around Lake Wakatipu—a time matching her road race performances.
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Dual Career and Daily Discipline
Even while competing in high-profile races across Europe and the United States, Maciel maintained a parallel career in the legal field, splitting her time between São Paulo and Madrid. Her grueling routine required training sessions starting at 5:00 a.m. and weekend travel to compete. For the athlete, maintaining another income stream and a professional career outside sports was always a deliberate choice, one shared by many elite trail runners worldwide.
World Circuit Podiums and Major Victories
Impressive results followed quickly. In 2009, Maciel won the TDS (then around 115 km), an event of the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB) festival, where she went on to achieve four podiums and nine finishes. Over her career, she secured major wins on the world circuit, including Transgrancanaria, Ultra-Trail Mt. Fuji in Japan, and Lavaredo Ultra Trail in the Dolomites, alongside two podium finishes at the Marathon des Sables and domestic titles in Brazil like the Endurance Challenge in Agulhas Negras.
Elite Training and Working with Top Names
Training alongside top athletes such as Rory Bosio, Emelie Forsberg, and Stephanie Howe fueled Maciel's competitive consistency. Sharing workouts and rigorous preparation helped her overcome technical and physical challenges, including recovering from a traumatic brain injury, before shifting her focus toward high-altitude mountaineering projects and ultra-endurance records.
The European Myth and Training Adaptations
Maciel dismisses the idea that Brazilian athletes must live in the Alps or the Pyrenees to compete at the world-class level. Having won major international races while living in São Paulo, she stresses that success comes down to accumulated mileage, hill repeats on local inclines, and race strategy. To compensate for the lack of continuous high-altitude training at home, she recommends dedicated acclimatization periods and course scouting in the weeks leading up to target events, while training the mind to break down daunting distances.
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