Shauna Coxsey MBE is a British professional rock climber and the most successful competition climber in UK history, best known for winning the IFSC Bouldering World Cup Season in back-to-back years in 2016 and 2017.
She began climbing at just four years old and went on to represent Great Britain at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, becoming the first British climber ever to compete at the Games.
Who is Shauna Coxsey?
Shauna Coxsey is an English professional rock climber who dominated international bouldering competition for over a decade.
She holds the IFSC Bouldering World Cup overall title for 2016 and 2017, making her Britain’s first-ever winner of that season prize.
Her career produced more than 30 IFSC World Cup medals, two World Championship bronze medals, and the distinction of being the first British woman to climb boulder grades of 8A+, 8B, and 8B+.
She retired from competitive climbing after the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Since retiring, she has continued to perform at the elite level outdoors, sent multiple 8B+ boulder problems, and taken on roles as a commentator and athlete advocate.
In 2021, the International Federation of Sport Climbing elected her President of the IFSC Athletes’ Commission.
She also co-founded Mini Beasts, a children’s climbing holds brand, alongside her husband Ned Feehally and fellow climber Arona Morrison.
Early Life of Shauna Coxsey
Shauna Coxsey was born on January 27, 1993, in Runcorn, Cheshire, England. She grew up in the northwest of England and showed an extraordinary affinity for climbing from a very young age.
Her father, Mike Coxsey, and mother, Mavis Coxsey, are her parents. She also has five half-siblings, none of whom took up sport at the same level.
At age four, she watched a television documentary featuring French free climber Catherine Destivelle free-soloing a wall in Mali, Africa. That broadcast sparked her determination to try climbing herself.
Her father then took her to their local indoor climbing gym in Runcorn, where she had to convince staff to let her climb since she was initially too small for the wall.
A few months after that first visit, she was finally allowed on the holds and never stopped.
By age seven, she won her first local competition. At 15, she became British national champion for the first time.
Shauna Coxsey Age / Birthday
Shauna Coxsey is 33 years old as of 2026, born on January 27, 1993. Her zodiac sign is Aquarius, a sign often linked with independence and originality.
She has lived in Sheffield, England, with her husband and daughter for several years.
Shauna Coxsey Ethnicity and Nationality
Shauna holds British nationality and was born and raised in England. She is of white British descent.
Her upbringing in Cheshire placed her close to the Peak District, one of Britain’s most famous bouldering landscapes.
Shauna Coxsey Height and Weight
Shauna stands at 5 feet 5 inches tall, or 164 centimetres. Her listed competition weight is 58 kg (128 lbs).
She has an ape index of +8.5 centimetres, meaning her arm span exceeds her height, which provides a physical advantage on steep bouldering routes.
Shauna Coxsey Career
Early Competition Years (2010–2015)
Shauna entered the adult competition circuit in 2010 at her first bouldering World Cup event in Sheffield and immediately began focusing exclusively on bouldering.
She had previously competed in youth series events in lead climbing, but the World Cup debut in her home country steered her career firmly toward bouldering.
In 2012, she placed third in the overall Bouldering World Cup standings and won the ninth edition of the Melloblocco competition in Italy.
That same year, she placed second at World Cup stages in Log Dragomer and Innsbruck.
In June 2013, she achieved her first ascent graded 8B (V13), completing Nuthin’ But Sunshine in Rocky Mountain National Park, USA, becoming the first woman to climb that problem.
In November 2013, the British Mountaineering Council named her one of its first-ever BMC Ambassadors.
In 2014, Shauna finished second overall in the IFSC Bouldering World Cup and fourth at the Bouldering World Championships in Munich.
That same year, she completed New Base Line at Magic Wood in Switzerland, the first female ascent of an 8B+ (V14) problem, making her one of just a handful of women ever to reach that grade.
She placed second again overall in the 2015 Bouldering World Cup and won silver at the La Sportiva Legends Only event that year.
World Cup Titles and Peak Years (2016–2017)
The 2016 IFSC Bouldering World Cup season marked Shauna’s highest point in competition.
She won four World Cup events that year, in Meiringen (Switzerland), Kazo (Japan), Innsbruck (Austria), and Sheffield (UK), and placed second in Munich.
A shoulder injury sustained at the Munich World Cup prevented her from competing at that year’s Bouldering World Championships, despite her topping the season standings.
She still claimed the overall World Cup title, becoming Britain’s first-ever winner of the season prize.
In 2016, she also won the British Bouldering Championship and received her Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) honor for services to climbing.
Shauna defended her World Cup title in 2017, winning the overall Bouldering World Cup season again.
She also won the La Sportiva Legends Only event that year and placed third overall in the combined World Cup.
Her five-year winning streak at the Climbing Works International Festival (CWIF) in Sheffield, running from 2012 through 2016, remained one of the most impressive unbeaten runs in the event’s history.
Tokyo Olympics and Retirement (2019–2021)
From 2019, Shauna broadened her discipline focus to qualify for the first-ever Olympic climbing event, which required competing in lead, bouldering, and speed combined.
At the 2019 IFSC Climbing World Championships in Hachioji, Japan, she won two bronze medals: one in bouldering and one in the combined event.
During the combined event finals in Hachioji, she set a British women’s speed climbing record of 9.141 seconds. That performance secured her a qualification spot for the Tokyo Olympics.
Shauna competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, becoming the first British climber in history to represent Great Britain at the Games.
She arrived for the competition still recovering from a back injury and subsequent surgery.
She finished in 10th place out of 20 qualified women. After Tokyo, she retired from competitive climbing.
In 2021, fellow athletes elected Shauna as President of the IFSC Athletes’ Commission at the World Championships in Moscow.
Post-Retirement Outdoor Climbing and Return (2022–2026)
After retiring from competition, Shauna focused entirely on high-grade outdoor bouldering.
In 2022, she continued climbing indoors throughout her pregnancy, working with a specialist physiotherapist and her husband to assess routes as her body changed.
She climbed until the evening before her daughter’s birth.
In 2024, she completed three 8B+ (V14) boulder problems: the first female ascent of Fotofobia Sit in La Pedriza, Spain; the first female ascent of The Boss at Yarncliffe Woods in the Peak District, also the first 8B+ by any woman on British rock; and a repeat of Hazel Grace in Gotthard Pass, Switzerland.
In February 2025, she secured the third overall ascent and first female ascent of Mito Sit (8B+) in Sintra, Portugal, completing the boulder in just two sessions.
In March 2025, she made the second ascent of Lupin (8B) on Stanton Moor in the Peak District.
In 2026, she returned briefly to competition for the final running of the Climbing Works International Festival (CWIF) in Sheffield and won, finishing ahead of Chloé Caulier and Jenya Kazbekova.
She also worked as a commentator for the 2023 IFSC Climbing World Championships in Bern and as a pundit for Eurosport/Discovery during the Paris 2024 Olympics climbing broadcasts.
Shauna Coxsey Awards and Recognition
Shauna’s competition record places her above every other British climber in history. Her major titles and honors include:
| Year | Award / Achievement |
|---|---|
| 2016 | IFSC Bouldering World Cup Overall Winner |
| 2016 | MBE for services to climbing |
| 2016 | British Bouldering Champion |
| 2017 | IFSC Bouldering World Cup Overall Winner |
| 2017 | La Sportiva Legends Only, Bouldering Winner |
| 2019 | World Championship Bronze, Bouldering |
| 2019 | World Championship Bronze, Combined |
| 2021 | First British climber at the Olympic Games |
| 2021 | Elected President, IFSC Athletes’ Commission |
| 2026 | CWIF Bouldering Winner |
She accumulated over 30 IFSC World Cup medals throughout her competitive career.
Shauna Coxsey Brand Endorsements
Shauna has been a sponsored Red Bull athlete, one of the flagship names in Red Bull’s UK sports roster.
Red Bull supported her through her Olympic campaign and continued as a partner during her outdoor climbing career post-retirement.
She also received sponsorship from Five Ten and Adidas during her competitive years. Her equipment sponsors have included Rhino Skin and Thule.
Beyond personal sponsorships, she co-founded Mini Beasts, a children’s climbing holds brand created with husband Ned Feehally and Arona Morrison.
The brand produces holds designed for small hands, aimed at making climbing accessible and fun for young children.
Shauna Coxsey Husband
Shauna Coxsey married professional climber Ned Feehally in 2021, after the couple postponed their wedding multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ned is a highly accomplished boulderer in his own right, known for establishing difficult problems including The Boss at Yarncliffe, which Shauna later repeated in 2024.
The two share a life built around climbing, living together in Sheffield, England. Ned also played a key role in assessing routes safely during Shauna’s pregnancy in 2022.
Shauna Coxsey Children
In May 2022, Shauna and Ned welcomed their daughter, Frankie Feehally, into the world.
Shauna had continued climbing throughout her pregnancy, a decision that drew public debate and criticism, which she addressed directly in interviews.
She maintained that she made informed choices guided by medical professionals.
Shauna has said that watching Frankie discover climbing has been one of the most joyful experiences of her life.
The Mini Beasts brand grew directly out of Ned’s desire to design climbing holds suited to Frankie’s small hands, and the family business became a way to share climbing with a new generation.
Shauna Coxsey Net Worth
Shauna Coxsey’s estimated net worth is $5 million as of 2026. Her income comes from a combination of prize money, Red Bull sponsorship, equipment deals, broadcasting work, and co-ownership of the Mini Beasts climbing holds brand.
Brand Deals and Sponsorships
Her long-term partnership with Red Bull is the most significant sponsorship of her career.
Red Bull supported her from her peak competition years through her Olympic campaign and continued during her outdoor climbing work.
She also held sponsorship agreements with Five Ten, Adidas, Rhino Skin, and Thule during her competitive years.
Business Ventures
Shauna and Ned co-founded Mini Beasts, a children’s climbing holds company aimed at making the sport accessible to young children.
The product line grew from Ned’s work designing holds suited to their daughter Frankie’s hands and expanded as interest from other families grew.
Broadcasting Income
Since retiring from competition, Shauna has built a commentary career.
She commentated on the 2023 IFSC Climbing World Championships in Bern and worked as a pundit for Eurosport/Discovery across the Paris 2024 Olympics climbing broadcasts.
That broadcasting role adds an ongoing income stream to her post-competition career.
Shauna Coxsey Social Media
Shauna is active on Instagram at @shaunacoxsey, where she posts about outdoor climbing projects, family life, and her work with Mini Beasts. Her account has over 440,000 followers.
She maintains a presence on X (Twitter) at @shaunacoxsey, where she previously connected with the climbing community during her competition years.
She also runs a YouTube channel under her own name where she has shared climbing content and personal vlogs.
Conclusion
Shauna Coxsey transformed British climbing by winning two World Cup overall titles, earning an MBE, and becoming the first UK climber at the Olympics, and her post-retirement record of multiple 8B+ ascents shows she was far from finished at the elite level.
Her career across competition, broadcasting, motherhood, and the Mini Beasts business makes her one of the most complete figures in the history of British sport.