Emily Harrington

Emily Harrington (born August 17, 1986) is an American professional rock climber and adventurer.[1] She is a five-time US National Champion in sport climbing and the first female climber to ascend multiple 5.14 sport climbs.[2] Harrington has sponsorships with The North Face, La Sportiva, and Petzl.[1][2][3] Harrington resides in Squaw Valley, California. She continues to train and expand her skill to become an all-around mountain athlete.[1]

Emily Harrington
Emily Harrington in 2015
Personal information
Born (1986-08-17) August 17, 1986
Family
PartnerAdrian Ballinger
Emily Harrington climbing Golden Gate (5.13 VI) on El Capitan

Early life

Emily Harrington was born on August 17, 1986, in Boulder, Colorado.[3] Her competitiveness pushed her to develop her climbing skills from an early age.[4] She began climbing artificial walls and competed with her local gym's climbing team.[4] From there, she became a professional sport climber and expanded into the worlds of rock and mountain climbing.[4]

Harrington studied international affairs with an emphasis on politics in Sub-Saharan Africa at the University of Colorado at Boulder. She graduated in 2007 and joined The North Face team in 2008.[5][6]

Achievements

Harrington has been US National Champion for sport climbing five times.[1] She was also named the North American Sport Climbing Champion twice and placed second in the World Championships in 2005.[3] In 2006, Harrington placed first at the Serre Chevalier Invitational.[3] She won first place in 2012 at the Ouray Ice Festival and has free climbed the Golden Gate route on El Capitan.[1] Harrington summited Mount Everest in 2012 and Cho Oyu in 2016.[4][7] Emily Harrington has made multiple first female 5.14 ascents and has been on expeditions all over the world.[1] She has attempted big wall free climbs and high altitude climbs in Nepal, China, Myanmar, Crimea, and Morocco.[1] In 2016, she summited Cho Oyu (sixth tallest peak in the world) in a record speed of two weeks and completed a ski descent from the summit.[6]

In November, 2020, Harrington became the first woman – and the fourth climber overall – to free-climb El Capitan via Golden Gate, the 3,000 ft (910 m) granite wall in Yosemite National Park, in a single day.[8] She completed the mammoth task in 21 hours, 13 minutes and 51 seconds.[9] She was assisted on the ascent by Alex Honnold. She had attempted this climb in 2019, but it ended in a 50 ft fall and a concussion.[10] Her achievement was mistakenly reported as the "first woman" to free climb the mountain, ignoring the achievements of Lynn Hill, Steph Davis, and Mayan Smith-Gobat on other routes before her; it was later corrected.[11]

Harrington has been featured in National Geographic Adventure blog, Women's Adventure Magazine, Rock & Ice Magazine, Urban Climber, The North Face, The Joe Rogan Experience podcast and Outside Magazine.[12][13]

Awards
  • US National Sport Climbing Champion x5[1]
  • North American Sport Climbing Champion x2[3]
  • 2005 World Champion-Runner Up[3]
  • 2006 Serre Chavalier Invitational Champion[3]
  • 2012 Ouray Ice Festival Champion[1]
  • 2013 Ouray Ice Festival, 3rd place finisher[14]

Ascents and expeditions

Notable Climbs

In 2012, Harrington was asked to join a joint expedition with The North Face and National Geographic to climb Mount Everest.[19] The expedition marked the beginning of her mountain career.

Two years later, in 2014, Harrington attempted to climb Hkakabo Razi, the tallest peak in Southeast Asia. This peak had only been climbed once before and Harrington's team intended to create their own route rather than follow that of the previous expedition. Harrington made it to the final route that would reach the summit, a climb that she described as "extremely difficult" and "extremely scary."[4] Ultimately Harrington was unable to complete the route due to her own exhaustion and because it was too advanced for her climbing skills, leading her to choose to turn back.[4]

In November 2020, Harrington became the first woman to free climb El Capitan via Golden Gate in under 24 hours.[20]

The year before, while practising the El Capitan climb, an accidental 50 ft fall required her to be rescued.[21] During the 2020 climb, Harrington slipped and fell, leaving her with a gash on her forehead.[22]

Personal life

Emily has been in a relationship with Adrian Ballinger since 2012.[23] Emily and Adrian met on a climb of Mount Everest.[24] She lives in Squaw Valley, California.[25]

References
  1. "Emily Harrington - La Sportiva North America / La Sportiva North America". www.sportiva.com. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  2. "Emily Harrington". TheNorthFace USA - English. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  3. "Emily Harrington | Team Petzl - Petzl USA". www.petzl.com. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  4. "Total Failure: The Mountain That Got Away". NPR.org. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  5. "Get That Life: How I Became a Professional Rock Climber". Cosmopolitan. 2016-02-01. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  6. "Emily Harrington | The North Face Climbing Athlete". www.thenorthface.com. Retrieved 2020-12-24.
  7. "Everest Climb Successful, Despite Crowds, Unrelenting Winds". 2012-05-26. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  8. Johnson, Lauren (November 8, 2020). "Emily Harrington becomes the first woman to free-climb El Capitan in under 24 hours". CNN. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  9. Ben Church. "US climber Emily Harrington makes history on El Capitan". CNN. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  10. park, Staff and agencies in Yosemite national (2020-11-07). "Emily Harrington becomes fourth woman to free-climb El Capitan in a day". the Guardian. Retrieved 2020-12-24.
  11. Bisharat, Andrew (2020-11-10). "Emily Harrington Did Something Amazing. Then the Press Blew It". Outside Online. Retrieved 2020-12-24.
  12. "Exploring the Birthplace of Sport Climbing in Europe's Grandest Canyon". Beyond the Edge. 2015-07-30. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  13. The North Face (2012-08-07), The North Face 2012 Speaker Series Presents, Emily Harrington, retrieved 2018-03-06
  14. "Emily Harrington". TheNorthFace Canada - English. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  15. "Meet the Couple Who Met on Everest and Just Speed-Climbed the World's Sixth-Tallest Peak". Vogue. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  16. "Himalayan Database Expedition Archives of Elizabeth Hawley". www.himalayandatabase.com. Retrieved 2019-05-16.
  17. "Women Can Send Big Walls Too: Emily Harrington Crushes El Capitan". Outside Online. 2015-06-30. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  18. The North Face (2017-01-25), The Incredible Hulk - Emily Harrington and Alex Honnold Free Climb "Solar Flare" (5.12d), retrieved 2018-03-06
  19. Favorite, Crowd (2012-05-26). "National Geographic and The North Face® Expedition to Mount Everest Reaches Summit". National Geographic Partners Press Room. Retrieved 2018-03-06.
  20. "Outside Online". 2020-11-06. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  21. Schaffer, Grayson (26 November 2019). "Inside Emily Harrington's Scary Fall on El Capitan". Outside. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  22. Johnson, Lauren M. (9 November 2020). "Emily Harrington becomes the fourth woman to free-climb El Capitan in under 24 hours". CTV News. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  23. https://mojagear.com/emily-harrington-and-adrian-ballinger-super-human-couple-shares-their-humanity/
  24. https://www.thefocus.news/health-and-fitness/adrian-ballinger/
  25. "Emily Harrington". RXR Sports. Retrieved 2020-12-24.
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