Sophomore Phoebe Oakley is ranked 13th in the nation for speed climbing and has been competitively competing since she was 8 years old. While she originally only began climbing because there was a gym next to her house, rock climbing has now become a key part of her life.

“I have always been really interested in rock climbing from watching the Olympics,” Oakley said. “But I didn’t know there were competitions I could go to. I first started in fourth grade because there was a rock climbing gym next to my house. That’s where I started because I could just walk there after school whenever I wanted. Then, as I began to compete a lot more, I moved to a better, more competitive team called Central Rock.”

In rock climbing, to progress through tournaments, an athlete must qualify for their region, division and nationals. Oakley advanced to nationals in 2024 and 2025, and qualified this year for the 2026 national team.

“I started by competing just for fun,” Oakley said. “But as I began to love the sport more and more, I began to put in more effort. Quickly, I became really good, so in seventh grade, I started competing in regional tournaments that anyone can sign up for. But after my first competition, I knew I would want to do more. Once I started to qualify for divisionals, I continued to get better and eventually made it to nationals.”

Throughout her career, Oakley has switched between different styles of climbing. Originally, she did speed climbing in which the goal is to get to the top of the wall as fast as you can. But over time, she switched to sport climbing, where you get points for how you get to the top — not how fast.

“I started in speed climbing because it came a lot more naturally to me,” Oakley said. “But, over time I  began to burn out, so I switched to sport climbing. It took more work, but I loved pushing myself to get better. After switching away from speed, I qualified for nationals. Last year. I got eighth divisionally for sport, and I got seventh for bouldering this year. On April 2nd and 3rd, I competed in sport climbing. I got fourth in divisionals, so now I have qualified for nationals.”

Oakley has put a lot of effort into climbing, practicing six days a week for over three hours a day. Oakley’s mom, Kim Oakley, feels that Oakley has pushed herself in order to perform at the highest level.

“Phoebe’s training schedule is very intense,” Kim Oakley said. “She has team practice four to five times a week for four hours. In addition to that, she is usually in the gym practicing on her own both Saturday and Sunday. Also, during competition season, she has competitions most weekends in locations all over.”

Oakley’s long-time head coach, Noah Hendrigsman, feels similar to Kim Oakley in that a large reason for Oakley’s success is her hard work and commitment.

“Phoebe pushes herself everyday,” Hendrigsman said. “Even on days where she might be feeling off, she always makes herself push herself to the limit. Her dedication is definitely her best quality. I have seen her improve over the course of the years by improving her mental resilience.”

One of the largest struggles in rock climbing is the mental side of it. Oakley feels that gathering herself before competitions helps her perform better.

“Rock climbing is genuinely one of my favorite things, but I do get really nervous,” Oakley said. “Bigger competitions you have to qualify for. Before you climb you have to be in isolation before you race so you can’t see other people. When I’m in isolation, I get nervous, but I just try to think positive. Then, when I start climbing, my nerves go away pretty much.”

Oakley feels that her hard work makes her proud of the person she is today. Looking back at her younger self, she feels that she has accomplished a major personal goal.

“Climbing is also really important for me because when I first joined I really wanted to get good,” Oakley said. “So, now it means a lot to me, how far I have come and how much better I have gotten. If I told my younger self I made it this far, I would be so proud of myself, and honestly, I don’t think I would believe it.”