Bio
Chris Sharma is a pioneering American climber who is known for his sport climbing and bouldering accomplishments all over the world, especially during the years of 2001 to 2013. He was born and raised in Santa Cruz, California, and started rock climbing at the age of 12 at Pacific Edge Climbing Gym.
He was considered a prodigy, and to this day is one of the most influential rock climbers of all time. Sharma won the gold medal at the adult 1996 US Open Bouldering Nationals at age 14, and when he was fifteen, he claimed the first ascent of Necessary Evil, the hardest sport climb on American soil at the time. Since then he’s won medals at the UIAA World Championships, UIAA World Cup, and the IFSC World Cup.
Stats
Ape Index: 1.03 / +2.5″
DOB: 4/23/1981
Started Climbing: age 12
Highest Grade: 5.15b
In 2001, he completed the entire Biographie/Realization route, becoming the first person to do so, and in the process climbed the first 9a+ (5.15a) in the world. After this accomplishment, Sharma almost quit climbing, and abandoned competitions to began a personal journey to focus on “King Lines,” a term that refers to iconic routes that motivate him. He continued to push the limits of climbing, and in 2008, he was the first climber to tick the grade 5.15b (9b) with the first ascent of Jumbo Love.
Chris Sharma now lives with his wife, Jimena Alarcón, and their two kids in Barcelona. He’s still a professional climber who especially enjoys deep water soloing and has climbed in beautiful places like Spain, Australia, and all over the United States. He teamed up with childhood friend Jason Momoa and American Ninja Warrior Meagan Martin to create the first ever climbing TV series, The Climb, which premiered on HBO Max in early 2023. He also owns several climbing gyms in both Spain and California: Sharma Climbing BCN (Barcelona), Sharma Climbing Gava, and rock climbing gym Sender One.
You can keep up with Chris by following him on Instagram, Facebook, and on the Climbing Gold podcast.
Notable Climbs
Biographie/Realization – 2001
At the young age of only nineteen, Chris completed an extension of Biographie in Ceuse, France, and named it Realization. This route was the first 5.15a in the world and a major milestone in Chris’ climbing career. He linked the first and second section of Biographie, and in the process was the first person to ever complete the entire route. You can watch the ascent on YouTube.
FA Catalan Witness the Fitness (V15) – 2016
In 2005, Chris claimed the first ascent for an 8c boulder problem called Witness the Fitness, located in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas – here’s a really old video of him working on it back when he was rocking dreads. Fast forward to 2016, when Sharma claimed another first ascent, this time at Cova de Ocell in Spain. He called it Catalan Witness the Fitness (8B+), an homage to the Arkansas route that was also a horizontal roof problem with a similar crux.
El Bon Combat (5.15b/c) – 2015
Back in March of 2015, Chris finally claimed the first ascent of a project he’d been working on for three months, El Bon Combat. He suggested the grade 5.15b (9b), making it his hardest first ascent, as well as the second hardest route he’d completed thus far. At this point in time, Chris Sharma and Adam Ondra were the only climbers to have ticked this grade. Chris said in an interview with Planet Mountain that this climb was “more than just an athletic test, it’s spectacular, inspiring, though-provoking.”
La Dura Dura – 2011
In 2009, Chris Sharma bolted a route called La Dura Dura, but it became one of the few routes that he himself would give up on, saying “I never saw myself being able to climb it.” He invited Adam Ondra to give it a go, and the duo spent time over the next year working on it in a collaborative process.
Adam Ondra clipped the chains in February 2013, with Chris claiming the second ascent a month later in March. This climb was symbolic of the passing of the torch, the world’s strongest rock climber of the generation passing on the title to the next generation.
Also, this route held the title for the world’s hardest climb for five years until Adam Ondra climbed Silence at 9c (5.15d) in 2017.
Jumbo Love (5.15b/9a) – 2008
At Clark Mountain in California is Jumbo Love, the world’s first 5.15b, and it was first climbed by Chris Sharma in 2008. Although it was originally bolted by Randy Leavitt, Sharma re-bolted it to create the massive 250-foot pitch that would become Jumbo Love, an ode to neighbor Jumbo Pumping Hate (8b). Now it’s one of the most iconic routes in the United States and the world.
Biographie/Realization – 2001
At the young age of only nineteen, Chris completed an extension of Biographie in Ceuse, France, and named it Realization. This route was the first 5.15a in the world and a major milestone in Chris’ climbing career. He linked the first and second section of Biographie, and in the process was the first person to ever complete the entire route. You can watch the ascent on YouTube.
The Mandala (V12) – 2001
In the Buttermilks of California, The Mandala was a world class boulder problem. Now rated a V12, this route may have been as difficult as V14 before several holds breaking that have made the route significantly easier.
Necessary Evil (5.14c) – 1997
The route Necessary Evil is a direct start to Route of All Evil (5.14a), which was bolted in 1991 by Boone Speed. After Chris claimed the first ascent, it became the first 8c+/5.14c in the United States and was one of the hardest sport climbs thus far. The route is located in Arizona’s Virgin River Gorge, and it took Chris seven days before he as able to redpoint it, saying “it has some of the smallest holds I’ve ever pulled on..”