XTERRA Trail Run World Championship
Every runner has a reason, with no two stories the same. Stories of Stride and Spirit is a series dedicated to the runners of the 2024 XTERRA Trail Run World Championship, and the beautiful, inspiring, and even tragic stories that have led them to the starting line on Sugarloaf Mountain. From the front runners to the back of the pack, these are the stories of those who kept on running.
For Geisla dos Santos Moraes and Severine Guerif, running has become much more than a passion—it’s a lifeline. From the lush trails of Ilhabela, Brazil, to the serene landscapes of France, these two women have carved out lives defined by resilience, strength, and an unwavering love for the natural world.
Geisla, a seasoned competitor with a heart full of gratitude for her family and her island home, runs to inspire others and honor her grandparents. Severine, having faced the toughest of life-altering challenges head-on, has transformed running into her philosophy of life—a way to overcome obstacles and embrace every moment.
As they prepare to take to the line on Sugarloaf Mountain, their stories serve as a reminder that running can be both an escape and a journey toward something far greater—whether it’s healing, connection, or simply the freedom to be fully alive.
Geisla dos Santos Moraes hails from the tropical island paradise of Ilhabela, Brazil. Portuguese for “Beautiful Island,” the archipelago sits in the Atlantic Ocean just four miles off the coast of the São Paulo state in Brazil.
Ilhabela certainly lives up to its name with pristine beaches, jungle trails, and cascading waterfalls. But what you might not expect are the forest-covered mountains with remote running trails.
This is where Geisla has honed her craft for the past 15 years.
“Running in nature is my passion,” she says. “I love adrenaline in the middle of the forests, trails, and mountains with ups and downs. I love running on trails in the middle of nature, because I feel free. I don't know how to explain it. I just know that it's an incredible and inexplicable feeling.”
During her childhood, Geisla swam and played basketball, volleyball, and soccer, but she didn’t start running until she was an adult. “From then on, I never stopped,” she says.
"I love running on trails in the middle of nature, because I feel free. I don't know how to explain it. I just know that it's an incredible and inexplicable feeling."
The 38-year-old competes in 20-22 races a year with distances ranging from 5km to 25km. She’s an XTERRA veteran and has competed at the Trail Run World Championship four times. She qualified for the event in 2017, 2018, and 2019, when it was based at Kualoa Ranch on the Hawaiian Island of Oahu.
“It was an incredible experience to race among the best in the world,” she says. “I think the biggest change I’ve noticed with trail races is the demand. Nowadays there are a lot more people interested in living this experience of running in the middle of nature than years ago.”
During her trail running adventures, Geisla not only found herself, but also the love of her life. José Paulo da Silva is her training, traveling, and life companion. They’ve been together for 13 years. 2024 will mark their fifth XTERRA Trail Run World Championship together.
Geisla and José Paulo connected during local races in Ilhabela. They “complete each other” because they share a love of running, competition, and they support each other’s goals.
“Both of us being athletes is perfect, because our thoughts are the same,” she says. “One always supports the other in everything- motivating each other when we get discouraged and encouraging each other.”
Yes, they can be competitive with each other, but only in training. When it’s time to race, “he focuses on beating the men, and I focus on beating the women!”
She’s not joking.
Geisla has a history of impressive finishes at the XTERRA Trail Run World Championship. In 2018, she placed 9th overall in the half marathon and was 7th overall in 2019. In 2023, she was crowned the F35-39 Trail Half Marathon World Champion.
Geisla will head back to Sugarloaf Mountain this fall to compete in the Half Marathon after qualifying with an age group win at XTERRA Ilhabela in June. José Paulo punched his ticket as well by placing 3rd in his age group. She credits their excellent performances to local knowledge of the course, which allowed them to train confidently and feel prepared on race day.
“As soon as José Paulo crossed the finish line, he was sure he had qualified, and I reaffirmed my qualification for the XTERRA World Championship,” she says. “We were very happy about that because we could both compete in the World Championship again.”
At the upcoming XTERRA Trail Run World Championship, Geisla will compete in the Half Marathon. What’s her goal? It’s the same for every race—to do her best.
“The result will be the consequence of all the dedication and discipline in my training,” she says. “I run to overcome myself in each race and for my grandparents who have always supported me, and today accompany me from heaven. I run for my family, and I run to inspire and motivate others.”
Halfway around the world, in an entirely different hemisphere than Geisla, lives Severine Guerif. She’s a 50-year-old mother and business engineer for whom running has become a way of life.
Severine lives in St Herblain near Nantes in the west of France. She’s been in a relationship with her partner, Christophe, for 29 years, and she has a 19-year-old son named Mathis.
Severine started running when she was 17 with no other goal than to escape. “It was just like in the movie Forest Gump with my Walkman and cassettes,” she says. “I just wanted to run, leave home, and escape a teenage reality that didn't suit me.”
Through running, Severine found the answers to her questions, a sense of serenity, and the realization that she can surpass her own expectations.
“Nature has always been at the center of my passions,” she explains. “Feeling the wind and rain, listening to the birds, and going on adventures in natural landscapes… that's everything I love. But I never thought I would be able to compete. I didn't have the confidence.”
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That all changed in 2017 when she started competing in triathlon and duathlon. At the time, Christophe was very ill with Lyme disease and could barely walk. In his honor, she entered a race and qualified for the 2019 Pontevedra ITU Duathlon World Championships. She came in 6th place, just one minute off the podium.
At the time, she was only training four hours a week. After the race, she made a promise to herself that she would completely change her approach. “I changed everything (physical, mental, tactical, and nutrition) to get on the podium,” she says.
She achieved her goal in 2021 when she was named the 45-49 age group winner at the World Triathlon Duathlon Championships in Aviles.
In June of 2022, just one day before the next Duathlon World Championship, everything came to a screeching halt. She was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“Of course, I had difficult times. I cried every day from sadness and injustice.'
Severine still wanted to compete, so she told herself that the cancer would wait for her return. But during the trip, her bike was lost in transit. Unflappable as always, Severine rode Christophe’s bike to win her second title at the World Triathlon Duathlon Championships in Targue Mures. (She would win her third title at the World Triathlon Duathlon Championships in Ibiza in 2023.)
Severine had surgery shortly upon her return from Targue Mures, and in order to deal with the mental stress of her diagnosis, she continued training. She and Christophe even won the 24-hour Le Mans bike race as a team. The day after that event, she started radiotherapy.
“Sport was essential during the treatments, to continue to be strong physically and mentally,” she says. “Of course, I had difficult times. I cried every day from sadness and injustice. Then, because of the side effects of the treatments, I accepted that my life would be different forever. It was thanks to sport that I found solutions not to sink and, on the contrary, to develop new adaptations.”
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Due to some side effects of her treatments, she had to give up swimming. Therefore, she could no longer compete in triathlon. Instead of viewing this as another setback, she saw it as an opportunity to do something different.
That’s when she discovered XTERRA. She already loved running on trails, so it was the perfect outlet to fulfill her desire for competition.
In May 2023, Severine ran the Trail du Saint-Jacques 17km in France and placed third overall. Then, at the XTERRA Trail Vallee de Joux 22K in Switzerland, she was crowned the first place female, which secured her spot for the XTERRA Trail Run World Championship.
"It was thanks to sport that I found solutions not to sink and, on the contrary, to develop new adaptations.”
“It is with XTERRA that this great adventure begins in the Half Marathon,” she says.
In December, Severine decided to up the ante and run her first marathon. She created her own training program, which she’s been doing for years. Her goal was to achieve a sub-three hour finish without exceeding 40km of training miles per week.
“I said to myself, if I succeed in this crazy bet, with extraordinary training and just six prunes on me for supplies, nothing will stop me from all my other projects,” she says. “I did it. I ran my first marathon in two hours and 29 minutes!”
When Severine takes on a new sporting challenge, she does everything within her power to succeed. But in addition to fulfilling her desire for competition, running has also become a way of life- the base of her balance and the source of her energy.
“When I run, I feel free, in harmony with myself and the environment,” she says. “I live fully in the present moment. Now, I can say that running has saved me and helped me with life's difficulties.”
“Now, I run to make my dreams come true. I run to find the answers to my questions. Running is a philosophy and the art of living.”
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Stories of Stride and Spirit is an XTERRA Trail Run World Championship series designed to celebrate the runners taking on the trails of Sugarloaf Mountain and the unique, diverse, and often unexpected motivations that drive them forward. To catch up on the series, read part #1, part #2, part #3, part #4, and part #5 as each of these runners now prepare to take on the pinnacle event of the 2024 Trail Run World Series.
XTERRA is a global lifestyle brand that champions the outdoor enthusiast in their pursuit of relentless adventure.
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