Quick Facts
Athlete Introduction
Full Name
Ryan Mex
Country/Nationality
Maltese
Short Bio
Started running 10 years ago, when i was 27 (do the maths on my age ;), while living in Chamonix, France. My first runs were trail runs in the French Alps and to this day, my favourite runs remain on the trails. My typical year of training and racing flows through various training blocs, ranging from road racing anything between 10k and Marathon, trail runs ranging in distance between 10k and 100k, and Spartan races.
Athlete’s Stats
Discipline/Category
Long & Short Distance Running
My typical year of training and racing flows through various training blocs, ranging from road racing anything between 10k and Marathon, trail runs ranging in distance between 10k and 100k, and Spartan races. For example, 2024 calender looked like this:
January: Seville HM
February: Seville Marathon
May: Gozo 50k Trail Ultra
May: Spartan Beast Slovenia 25k Championship
June: Trail Running Long Distance World Championships 60km
July: Spartan Ultra World Championships 55k w/ 60 obstacles
July: Spartan Super Croatia 12km Championship
October: Spartan Super Malta 12km Championship
December: Valencia Marathon
December: M2S
Personal Bests
16:04 – 5Km
33:23 – 10Km
1:10:53 – Half Marathon
2:29:57 – Full Marathon
4:20:50 – 50Km Ultra (National record and FKT by a Maltese, but not a course record)
Career Highlights
Highlights
All national team representations are very special, fond moments in my athletic career. It’s been 6 years in a row on the trail & mountain running Malta National Team, both in short and long distance. Wearing the Malta kit and being an ambassador to our nation comes always with a mix of emotions; pride, pressure, and thrill.
Winning races, international podiums and PB performances also has an incredible thrill and always a special place in your memory. Its hard to select the most memorable, perhaps if i had to choose it would be:
– Running the last 7km of Valencia Marathon 2023, finishing off strongly with a negative split and being the fastest kilometres of the whole race, clocking at 2hr33′, a PB by 5 minutes and an ecstatic feeling which is hard to describe.
– Placing second place in Cappadocia Ultra 63k, racing neck to neck the final 3km with the athlete in 2nd / 3rd place to snatch the 2nd place after giving absolutely everything I had after 60k o f mountain running in your legs.
– My first Spartan Pro podium at the Morzine Ultra finishing in 3rd place overall- a race known to be among the most hardcore OCR races on the planet, after 6 years competing in Spartan and a dream come true.
– I can never forget my first Ultra Trail in 2016, the Grand Trail des Templiers 75km mountain race in France. How I managed to finish that race after just 6 months since I had started running still baffles me up to today!
Awards
– 8x The Grid OCR Wins
– 9x International OCR Wins
– 3x Trail Running National Champion
– 4x Gozo 50k Ultra Winner
– 21x local trail race wins
– 6x Malta Trail Running National Team in European & World Championships
– 12 x Ultra Trail Race Finisher
– 2x Cappadocia Ultra podiums (2022 2nd overall, 2023 3rd overall)
– 3rd place Morzine Spartan ultra (Pro Category)
– 2nd place Spartan European ChampionShip Age Group 30-35
– 3rd place overall Corsa Marathon 2023
– 8 years in a row running M2S under 1 hour
Training and Mindset
Training
Training is a daily commitment. It is the building block of athletes, the foundation on which athletes then build fitness which is then traded into speed and endurance. For the past years I have trained specifically for different races; be it OCR, ultra trail or the marathon. Each discipline requires specific training, both in load and intensity, on and off the track and gym, and I adapt training routine according to upcoming goal race.
Coaches/Teams
Aside to being an athlete, I coach an exclusive number of athletes. I am the head coach of Mex’d Out, an OCR & Running Team. Although I am qualified performance coach, I am personally coached by Ivan Roshnov – with whom I discuss my short & long term goals.
Motivation (quotes/thoughts/mindset)
If it was easy, everyone would be a champion. My mantra us to try be a better version of myself every day; today better then yesterday, tomorrow better then today.
Personal Touch
Hobbies/Interests
Travelling and Mountaineering: I enjoy annual mountain expeditions to some of the world’s biggest mountains, having summited Mt. Kilimanjaro, Mt. Elbrus, Mt Blanc, Gran Paradiso, Mt Toubkal, Mt. Kinabalu, Island Peak, Ama Dablam (Camp 3), 4x Everest Base Camp, and some more 4000m summits.
Inspirations
Killian Jornet and Nimsdai Purja.
Questions
About Their Running Journey
Do you remember your first race? What was it like?
My first race was the Marathon du Mt. Blanc, a gruelling 45k mountain race with 2800m elevation gain. The race broke me to pieces, I started to hard, I had cramps from 12km onwards, I was ill prepared, but somehow I made it to the finish line. I was sore for 5 days after the race.
What challenges did you face when you started running?
I started running on the mountain trails of Chamonix, France. My flat mates where athletes training for UTMB 170k race that following summer, and I was in awe of their training and mountain running abilities, so I tried to keep up with them. After 6 months in the sport, i pre-maturely signed up for a 75k race (a receipe for disaster) but I was a stubborn, over-trained newbie. I completed the 75km with a knee injury, which resulted in the worst injury of my career which put me off 10 weeks from running, with many lessons learnt!
What motivates you to keep running even on tough days?
Practising running (especially trail running) and the ambition behind it is neither for prestige nor for profit. I am motivated by a thirst for joy, a joy of totally being absorbed in wild environments – throwing away the jacket of comforts and leaving it behind at home.
Training and Preparation
What does a typical training week look like for you?
8 – 14 hours of running (100 -160km per week depending which phase of the training bloc), 2-4hrs of strength work, and another 2-4hrs of non- impact cardio (usually bike or walking).
How do you prepare mentally and physically for a big race?
I usually plan my A-races well in advance, usually 10-12 months before, so I can specifically plan training blocs and B-races preparing me for the A-race. When training goes to plan, the feeling of being as prepared as you can possibly be gives you that confidence and calmness to face the race bravely and control your emotions. Mentally, I like analyzing previous race stats and visualizing the race stages. I always have a race strategy which is meticulous in terms of pacing, hydration, nutrition, plan B’s, plan C’s etc and always abide by it.
What’s your favourite type of training workout?
Long runs with a particular goal, for example to cross Malta from south to North, or to run the perimiter of the island, or to run Lapsi hill up and down 4 times). Although these runs are the longest, mentally I feel the most free.
Personal Records and Achievements
Have you ever broken a record or achieved something unexpected?
Ending up on the podium in the Salomon Cappadocia Ultra Trail 63km in 2022 was definitly unexpected, waving the Malta flag on the biginternational stage, and the most prestigious trail result ever by a Maltese. It was a new distance for me and had no expectations about my performance. In 2023, I was invited by the CUT race organizers as an elite, and improved my time on the same route and also got another podium.
What is your proudest running achievement so far?
The marathon remains my preferred distance, racing against yourself and your previous time. My proudest running achievement has to be Valencia Marathon 2023, running a 5minute PB of 2hr33’ – but this race was not just about the finish time. It was an emotional race, running for my partner Jessica (now wife) who was injured and could not race. The last 7km where like an out of body experience, running speeds beyond what I thought was possible with 35km in your legs! The last 5km split remains to be my fastest 5k split in a marathon, ever.
Are you working toward a specific running goal right now?
This year 2025, after 10 years running, I signed up for a 100km ultra: the Mozart Ultra in Austria. Ultras are always a very ambitious goal, especialy when your plan is to race, rather then just to finish, and many factors can go wrong both in the training build up and during the race, which makes ultras a pandora’s box.
Mindset and Motivation
How do you deal with self-doubt or mental blocks?
As odd as it sounds, the hardest mental moments make me emotional and pure, and that feeling is something I relish and I crave. Its important to get these vulnerable moments, naked from ego. They happen for a reason and these moments help you reset.
How do you stay motivated during long runs or difficult races?
Usually, the end goal is the motivation itself, the reason why we are doing this. I know that long run and hard sessions will help me inch myself closer to my end goals, so it has to be done. During difficult races, sometimes we hit rock bottom – it happens to everyone. You reach a point where you want to pull the plug and quit. There is always a solution to get our of this dark hole, and their are always lessons that come out from this.
Do you visualize your goals or races? How does that help you?
I always visualize races and racing outcomes. If its a trail race or OCR race for example, I would want to know as much as possible the route, where the aid stations are and what refueling is available, long hills or sketchy descents, technical sections, route surprises or any where you can get lost, weather forecast and expected temperatures etc if its a road HM or FM, i would know in advance my pacing strategy and nutrition strategy, and before the race will visualize and mentally prepare any feelings to be encountered when it gets tough, and how will i deal with them.
Community and Impact
Do you have any running partners or groups you train with?
With time I have adapted to run alone, in my own time. I run 90% of my trainings solo and have spent weeks on end in training camps by myself. Although I’m totally fine with running solo – I can not deny that running does feel better with company. My go-to running buddies are some of my Mex’d Out team, all athletes which I coach, who have similar running ambitions as mine.
How do you encourage others to start running?
Running has grown to be more then a passion for me, it is my job now as a performance coach. Encouraging and motivating others is something i do on a daily basis, both professionally and personally. After 10 years in the running scene, it is a fact that running and fitness is the ebst investment you can do to yourself, and I try communicate this as much as possible.
What legacy do you hope to leave in the running world?
My coaching journey started 4 years ago, and came into my life quite unexpectedly. I never planned or imagined I would be a coach, but as soon as I quit my ex- office job, I started analyzing performance and fitness in more detail and soon after started helping others. Results spoke for themselves, and nowadays I can proudly say all my coaching slots are always full and all athletes under my guidance are bringing home Persona Bests year in year out, some of which at very high levels as well.
Message
Don’t hesitate to seek for professional guidance if you want to take it to the next level.
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