Professional Climber: Chris Sharma

Chris Omprakash Sharma started rock climbing when he was 12 at the Pacific Edge climbing gym. At age 14, Sharma won the Bouldering Nationals. A year later, he completed a 5.14c climb, which was the highest-rated climb in North America at the time. Sharma then moved to Bishop, California,where he climbed The Mandala, a bouldering problem rated V12.

In July 2001, Sharma completed the extension of the established route Biographie in Ceüse, located in the Hautes-Alpes Department of France and renamed it Realization, ignoring the European tradition that equippers and not climbers name routes outside the US. At the time of the first ascent, Biographie was widely considered to be the first consensus 5.15 (9a+) in the world. He has since established or completed many routes at or above 5.15, including La Rambla and Es Pontas (a deep water soloing project in Mallorca). In 2008 Sharma climbed the 250-foot line (76 m), Jumbo Love, at Clark Mountain in California, claiming 5.15b for the grade.