Mohamed Lahna was born in Casablanca, Morocco, the eldest of five children, with a birth defect called Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency that effectively left him without a right femur and fibula. While his parents were told that nothing could be done for his condition and to not get their hopes up about mobility, it did not stop Mohamed from being an active child, climbing shelves and wreaking havoc in his neighborhood. He would find his own approach whenever he encountered obstacles and continues to problem solve and innovate around his unique anatomy.

Mohamed embodies the saying, “it’s never too late.” He was fit with his first real prosthesis at the age of 20, rode a bike for the first time at 25, crossed the Atlas Mountains at 26, and ran his first marathon at 27. He successfully swam across the Gibraltar Strait, raced across the Sahara Desert by foot in the Marathon des Sables, and is still the only adaptive athlete to complete the Norseman Xtreme Triathlon (black t-shirt winner). All while completing his bachelor’s degree in Business Management and now working full-time, Mohamed trains for and competes regularly on the triathlon circuit. He never imagined a few years ago that he would be traveling the world doing adventure sports and competing in international elite triathlon races.

In 2016, Mohamed qualified for the Rio Paralympic Games representing his home country of Morocco. It was a proud moment to stand on the podium with his 3rd place finish, proving what hard work and perseverance can do for a scrappy kid with no expectations in life. Now, with his growing family hailing California, USA as their home, Mohamed is excited about honoring the commitment he made when he became an American citizen: to compete under the American flag as part of Team USA for the upcoming Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. So far, his race season has proven that training, discipline, drive, and maturity are key ingredients to his success having placed 2nd at the Americas World Cup, 1st place at the World Paratriathlon Series in Devonport, and 2nd at the World Championships in Pontevedra 2023. With these milestones, Mohamed has officially qualified for the Paralympics in Paris 2024, making him the first male paratriathlete making Team USA in Paratriathlon.

Working with a select team of coaches and other experts, Mohamed has seen huge gains in his performance with better technique, more focused training programs, and refinements to his adaptive equipment. He is excited to represent his adopted home now, hopefully capping the adventure with a gold-medal finish in Paris. He is proud to share his story, inspiring others to reach beyond their perceived limitations and see boundaries as opportunities to be creative no matter where we come from or what age we are.