She's from Manhattan. She's a gym rat-a climber who spends most of her time climbing synthetic, indoor "rock" walls. But at age 14, Ashima Shiraishi is considered to be among the best climbers in the world. At 13, Ashima Shiraishi became the youngest person - male or female - to climb a 5.15a route, one of the highest difficulty of graded climbs. She was also the first woman to do so.
Rock climbing is a sport of incremental improvement. Each year, the world's top climbers attempt harder, more grueling routes for the sole purpose of pushing the sport further. It is also a discipline of collaboration. Sometimes a route looks beyond impossible until you see another climber ascend it.
Shiraishi knows this collaboration first-hand. When she sent Golden Shadow, becoming the second woman to climb a V14 boulder problem (a physically intensive form of climbing performed near to the ground using no ropes), she started a domino effect. Only three weeks after her 2014 ascent, Shauna Coxsey hit New Base Line (V14) and Alex Puccio sent Jade (also V14).
In March of 2015, she and her trainer Poppo - who also happens to be her father - travelled to Santa Linya, Spain. The purpose of their trip was to visit and climb with Chris Sharma, an athlete who was recently considered the best climber in the world (he is now probably third). In Santa Linya, Sharma encouraged Shiraishi to try Open Your Mind Direct, a 5.15a sport route. After hurting her wrist the first day, it took her only three more before she made it to the top.
"Ashima ... You rule," wrote Joe Kinder on Facebook, "After visiting this cliff for years now I can confirm how hard this thing is. Most people that have climbed it have put in seasons or years. Congrats lil chica! I cannot wait to see what's next."
Ashima... You rule... So proud of you. 9a+.... and a SOLID and seldom climbed one. After visiting this cliff for years...
Posted by Joe Kinder on Tuesday, March 17, 2015
