Molly Thompson-Smith takes part in BBC’s Young Reporter festival
4 years ago
Korea Chaehyun Seo is an Olympic sport climber who won the overall World Cup title in her debut season and continues to achieve top rankings in lead and bouldering events.
Black Diamond ambassador Chaehyun Seo promotes the brand, expressing gratitude for their support in her climbing career and personal growth. She is featured in the brand's content, including a video titled 'Black Diamond Presents: La Rambla with Chae-hyun Seo,' highlighting her achievements. Black Diamond announced Chaehyun Seo as a Bouldering and Lead Climb Athlete, noting her achievements as IFSC Lead World Champion (2021) and Asian Championship Gold medalist.
Mentioned in her Instagram bio, 'thenorthfacekr' indicates a partnership or sponsorship with The North Face Korea.
Chaehyun Seo was born on November 1, 2003, in Seoul, South Korea. Her introduction to climbing began at a young age in 2008, as her parents owned a climbing gym in Seoul. This early exposure fostered her talent in competition climbing, sport climbing, and bouldering. Her professional career in competitive climbing started in 2017. By 2018, at the age of 14, Seo demonstrated her skill in rock climbing by redpointing ‘Bad Girls Club’, a 9a (5.14d) graded sport climbing route located at the Wicked Cave near Rifle, Colorado.
In 2019, Seo made her debut in the IFSC Climbing World Cup, where she secured the Lead World Cup season title. This achievement included four gold medals, one silver medal, and one bronze medal. That same year, she competed in the Asian Championships, earning gold medals in both the lead and bouldering disciplines. Seo qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics through her performance in the combined event at the 2019 IFSC Climbing World Championships. She competed in the 2020 Summer Olympics at 17 years old, finishing eighth overall in the women’s combined event. Following her Olympic appearance, she won the IFSC World Championship in lead climbing in 2021.
Her achievements continued in 2022, placing second overall in the IFSC World Cup season for lead, with three silver and two bronze medals. She also earned multiple medals at the 2022 Asian Championships, including gold in lead and combined, and bronze in bouldering. In November 2022, at age 19, Seo redpointed ‘La Rambla’, a 9a+ (5.15a) graded Spanish sport climb, becoming the second woman to achieve this. During the same trip, she onsighted ‘L’Antagonista’, an 8c (5.14b) graded route, making her the second female to onsight a route of that grade. In 2023, she finished third in lead at the World Championships and secured a silver medal in the women’s combined competition at the 2022 Asian Games. Seo further represented South Korea at the 2024 Summer Olympics, placing sixth overall in the women’s combined event. Her career demonstrates consistent high-level performance and numerous significant achievements in international climbing competitions.
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