Chris Sharma

Chris Omprakash Sharma was born on April 23, 1981, in Santa Cruz, California. His parents, Gita Jahn and Bob Sharma, were devotees of yogi Baba Hari Dass, adopting the surname Sharma. He attended Mount Madonna and spent a year at Soquel High School. Sharma began rock climbing at age 12 at the Pacific Edge Climbing Gym, identifying as one of the early “climbing-gym-generation kids.” From an early age, Sharma was considered a prodigy, winning the adult 1996 US Open Bouldering Nationals at 14. A year later, at 15, he achieved the first free ascent of Boone Speed’s project, ‘Necessary Evil’ (5.14c), in the Virgin River Gorge, which was the hardest sport climb in North America at that time. At 16, he won silver at the biennial UIAA World Championships in Paris and gold at the Kranj leg of the UIAA World Cup for lead climbing. A serious knee injury at 16 sidelined him for over a year, during which he read extensively into Buddhism and meditation techniques, influencing his approach to climbing. Aged 18, Sharma moved to Bishop, California, and in February 2000, completed the first ascent of ‘The Mandala,’ a world-famous boulder problem.

On July 18, 2001, at 20, Sharma completed the extension of the 8c+ (5.14c) route ‘Biographie’ in Ceüse, France, naming it ‘Realization.’ This route became the world’s first consensus 9a+ (5.15a) and marked a significant technical evolution in sport climbing. This ascent was captured in Josh Lowell’s 2002 film, Dosage Volume 1. Days later, he won the Munich leg of the IFSC World Cup in bouldering but was disqualified due to a positive marijuana test. After ‘Realization,’ Sharma considered leaving climbing and undertook Buddhist pilgrimages. A 2003 trip to Mallorca, Spain, led him to rediscover his passion through deep-water soloing. He subsequently focused on establishing “King Lines”—iconic and challenging routes. In 2004, he solved the boulder problem ‘Practice of the Wild’ (V15), and in 2005, ‘Witness the Fitness’ (V15), followed by redpointing ‘Dreamcatcher’ (9a/5.14d), considered a landmark North American sport climb. In 2006, he made an early repeat of ‘La Rambla’ (9a+/5.15a) and, after 50 attempts, completed the first ascent of ‘Es Pontàs’ (9a+/5.15a DWS), a deep-water solo route in Mallorca. Many of his climbs from this era are featured in the 2007 film, ‘King Lines.’

In 2007, Sharma relocated to Lleida, Spain, near the Spanish Pyrenees, where he developed numerous new 9a+ (5.15a) to 9b (5.15b) sport climbs, primarily in Catalonian limestone crags. This period included the first ascents of ‘Papichulo’ (9a+/5.15a) in May 2008 and ‘Jumbo Love’ (9b/5.15b) in Clark Mountain, California, in September 2008, the latter being the world’s first consensus 9b route. His subsequent projects included ‘Golpe de Estado’ (9b, 2008), ‘Neanderthal’ (9b, 2009), and ‘First Round First Minute’ (9b, 2011). In 2011, he invited Adam Ondra to attempt ‘La Dura Dura’ (9b+/5.15c) in Oliana, a route Sharma had bolted in 2009. Their collaboration culminated in Ondra’s first ascent in February 2013 and Sharma’s first repeat in March 2013, a significant moment in climbing history documented in ‘Reel Rock 7’ (2012) and ‘La Dura Complete’ (2013). This period marked a transition of the “world’s best climber” title, with Sharma passing the mantle to Ondra. Following ‘La Dura Dura,’ Sharma continued to establish “King Lines,” including ‘El Bon Combat’ (9b/9b+, 2015) and ‘Alasha’ (9a DWS, 2016). He is also the founder of Sender One climbing gyms in Santa Ana, California, and Sharma Climbing BCN and Gava in Barcelona, Spain. He married Jimena Alarcón in 2015, and they have two children, Alana and an unnamed son.