Zangerl has made the first female free ascent (FFFA) of several major multi-pitch and big wall climbing routes including the Alpine Trilogy [it] in 2013, three major routes on El Capitan (El Nino in 2015, Zodiac in 2015, and Magic Mushroom in 2016), the Eiger's hardest route, Odyssee, in 2018, and one of the hardest high-altitude big wall routes, Eternal Flame on the Nameless Tower in Pakistan, in 2022.
Zangerl became the first person in history to successfully flash a route on El Capitan (Freerider in 2024).[4]
In 2019, she was named as the National Geographic 'Adventurer of the Year'. She is also known for her climbing partnership with Italian rock climber Jacopo Larcher.[1][3]
Early life
Zangerl was born and raised in the small village of Strengen in the Austrian Tyrol. Her parents would regularly bring their five children hiking and skiing in the surrounding mountains. When she was 14 years old, her brother brought her and her 16-year-old sister Claudia to the climbing gym in the neighboring village of Flirsch am Arlberg, where she became hooked on the sport. Austrian climber Bernd Zangerl [fr]–no relation—introduced the girls to climbing on natural rock, and to bouldering in particular.[1]
Climbing career
Bouldering
Focusing initially on bouldering, in 2005, Zangerl solved her first 8A (V11) graded problem with her ascent of X-Ray in Silvretta in Austria. In 2008, aged only 19, she solved Pura Vida in Switzerland's Magic Wood. At the time, the highest bouldering grade solved by a female climber was 8A+ (V12), and Pura Vida was considered at least 8A+/B and possibly 8B. While the first-ever full 8B (V13) graded boulder to be solved by a female is regarded as Angie Payne's 2010 ascent of Automator, Zangerl's 2008 ascent of Pura Vida is regarded as being the hardest boulder solved by a female climber at that time.[1]
Zangerl largely avoided the full competition bouldering circuit but did enter the annual international bouldering competition of Melloblocco, which she won four times in 2006, 2008, 2011, and 2013. After suffering a herniated L5-S1 disk in her lower back in 2009, she was forced to largely abandon bouldering for a few years and focus on types of climbing that created fewer direct strains on her back.[1][3]
Sport climbing
After retiring from bouldering and taking time off in 2009 to allow her back to recover, Zangerl began to focus on easier sport climbing routes.[3] While single pitch sport climbing never became a core focus for Zangerl, by 2018 she was climbing at the grade of 9a (5.14d) when the highest achieved female sport climbing grade was just two notches higher at 9b (5.15b).[5] Zangerl made the first female free ascent (FFFA) of several notable sport routes including Speed Integrale (9a, 2018),[5]Everything is Karate (8c+/9a, 2019),[6] and Sprengstoff (9a, 2021).[7] Zangerl has the first free ascent (FFA) of her own single-pitch routes including Gondo Crack8c (5.14b) in 2017 (which she "greenpointed" as a traditional route).[8]
It is in big wall climbing–in both traditional and sport climbing formats–that Zangerl focused much of her time, and often with climbing and life partner, Jacopo Larcher. While they will swap the easier leads on big wall routes, they will both individually lead all of the hard pitches.[3][2]
From 2015, Zangerl, climbing with partner Larcher, made the FFFA of several major big wall routes on El Capitan including El Nino5.13c (8a+) (2015),[18][19]Zodiac5.13d (8b) (2016),[20][21] and Magic Mushroom5.14a (8b+) (2017).[22] At the time of their ascent, Magic Mushroom was El Capitan's hardest route after The Dawn Wall, and their ascent was the first repeat of the route after Tommy Caldwell had made the FFA in 2008.[3][22]
In 2018, Zangerl and Larcher moved into big wall alpine climbing routes making the first repeat of the Eiger's hardest route, Odyssee at 5.13c (8a+).[23] In 2020, they returned to make the first one-day ascent of the route, taking under 16 hours.[23] In 2022, the pair ventured into high-altitude big-wall climbing on the Trango Towers, when they made only the third free ascent, and Zangerl the FFFA, of the historic high-altitude big wall route, Eternal Flame7c+ (5.13a), on the Nameless Tower in Pakistan, where the crux is at over 6,000 metres (20,000 ft).[24][25]
Legacy
As a result of her achievements across the rock climbing disciplines of bouldering, traditional climbing, sport climbing, multi-pitch climbing and big wall climbing, Zangerl is widely considered one of the world's strongest "all-round" female climbers.[1][3] She is noted for climbing at, or just below, the highest climbing grades being achieved by female rock climbers in each discipline, at various stages in her career.[26]
In 2019, National Geographic said: "Zangerl is Austrian, extremely humble, and carries an air of the girl-next-door. Her low-key nature, however, belies her reputation among her peers as the best all-around female climber in the world".[3] Czech climber Adam Ondra said of Zangerl: "It is extremely difficult to find climbers who are achieving in so many different disciplines, and among female climbers it is even more rare," and "Babsi is definitely one of the best all-around female climbers, if not the very best".[3] American climber Alex Honnold said: "I can't really think of any other women climbing at such a high level in so many different disciplines," and "She's such an unassuming 'world’s best.' She's so mellow that it's hard to think of her as 'the best,' which is a good thing".[3] In 2021, PlanetMountain called her "One of the great all-round climbers of our time".[2] In 2022, Climbing said of her "The Austrian Barbara “Babsi” Zangerl has ticked V13, 5.14d sport, 5.14 trad, the Alpine Trilogy of 5.14-, multi-pitch, high-altitude free climbs, and some of the hardest free routes on El Capitan, making her one of the best, most versatile climbers in the world".[1]
Personal life
For much of her professional climbing career, Zangerl has also held a part-time job as an assistant medical radiographer in a hospital in Bludenz in Austria. She began her studies as a radiographer while convalescing from her back injury in 2009.[1][2][3]
Since 2013, Zangerl has been in a relationship with Italian climber Jacopo Larcher, and the pair have been regular climbing partners since then.[3][2] In 2019, Zangerl told National Geographic about her relationship with Larcher: "We're a good team," and "It's easy for us to handle stress on the wall because there's always something to do. At home, though, it's a little different," she says with a laugh".[3]
2008: Pura Vida8A+/8B (V12/13), Magic Wood, Switzerland. FFFA and one of the hardest female boulder ascents at the time;[1] while the first-ever full 8B (V13) would be by Angie Payne in 2010, Zangerl is considered one of the first-ever boulder at 8A+/8B by a female.[28]
2019: The Nose5.14a (8b+), El Capitan, Yosemite, USA. Zangerl and climbing partner Jacopo Larcher became the 8th and 9th climbers to make a free (i.e. no use of aid climbing techniques) ascent of the famous big wall route that was first freed by Lynn Hill in 1993.[36]
2018: Odyssee5.13c (8a+), Eiger, Switzerland. FFFA and first repeat of the hardest route on the north face of the Eiger with Jacopo Larcher over 4 days. In 2020, the pair returned to make the first one-day ascent of the 1,400-metre route in 16 hours.[23]
2015: Die Unendliche Geschichte (The Neverending Story) 5.14a (8b+), Rätikon, Switzerland. Joint FFFA with Nina Caprez [de] and only the second-ever repeat of Beat Kammerlander [de]'s famous 1990 alpine big wall route.[17]
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