The Challenge’s Nia Moore Shares Touching Anecdote About Late Costar Diem Brown: ‘I Know She’s Here’

Nia Moore has a lot of fond memories of The Challenge over the years, but her favorite involves late costar Diem Brown .

“My most cherished memory, I would say, [is] in the airport before my season of Exes 2 . Diem, I didn’t know her [before the season],” Nia, 35, exclusively told Us Weekly earlier this month ahead of The Challenge 40: Battle of the Eras premiere. “She randomly walked up to me and she said, ‘Hey, girl, do you want to be my roommate?’ And I thought, ‘Why? How does she even know me? Why does she want a room with me?’ She saw me, and I was like, just in awe of her beauty and her light, and she pulled me in and made me her little sister.”

While filming season 26 back in early 2014, Nia shared that Diem gave her “so much wisdom” as they hung out on the set. No one in The Challenge family knew that it would be Diem’s last time on the series. She died in November 2014 at age 34 following a battle with ovarian cancer. The season was dedicated in her honor when it aired the following year.

“We would sit by the pool all day, and she would tell me things about life, about love, about relationships, just about growth and taking your time being patient,” Nia reflected. “And to know that those were her final moments.”

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Nia shared that no one on the cast knew that Brown’s cancer had returned at the time. Diem has been in remission several times. After collapsing on set, Diem was taken to the hospital and later learned the cancer had metastasized to her colon and stomach.

“I laid next to her and there were moments where I saw her suffering, but none of us knew that it was cancer, and none of us knew that this was the end for her,” Nia recalled. “But those moments of joy where she was dancing, laughing, singing with us, pushing herself past her own limits. I savor that, you know, and she's one of my angels. I think she's one of all of our angels.”

Nia is one of the 40 players competing in The Challenge ’s milestone season 40, which is currently airing. In Battle of the Eras, the competitors are divided into four different eras based on when they entered the MTV show. Nia is repping the third era.

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“I know that she's more than likely here right now, in this moment, so proud of us. I know she wished she could be here,” Nia added of Diem. “And all we can do is just think of her and think of her in terms of how we savor this experience because that's how her legacy will continue. I love Diem, and I know she's here.”

Fellow competitor Darrell Taylor , who is repping the first era in season 40, also shared that he thinks Diem would bring nothing but smiles to the group if she were here today.

“We did our first Challenge [together] because we were on the same [team] on Fresh Meat ,” he told Us about his experience with Diem on the show. “She was just such a beautiful soul. Man, she would, she would be proud and happy for us and tell us to dance because she loved to dance. She was always good energy.”

The Challenge: Battle of the Eras airs on MTV Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET

With reporting by Mariel Turner