Adriene Akiko Clark
 Clark at 2023 BFL Climbing Combine in Colorado | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | American | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born | December 6, 2004[1] St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.[2] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Rock climber | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 168 cm (5 ft 6 in) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Website | adrieneakiko.com | |||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Competition climbing | |||||||||||||||||||
Events | Bouldering, Sport climbing | |||||||||||||||||||
| Club | USA Climbing[3] | |||||||||||||||||||
Turned pro | May 8, 2022 (age 17) | |||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Adriene Akiko Clark (Akiko (Japanese: 明子); /ˈædriːənˈɑːkiːkoʊklɑːrk/ AD-ree-ən-AH-kee-koh-KLARK); born December 6, 2004)[4] is an American professional rock climber who competes in competition climbing, including the IFSC Climbing World Cup and national-level events. Representing the United States, Clark specializes in bouldering and lead climbing, and is a member of the 2025 USA Climbing National Team.
Clark earned her first international medal by winning gold in bouldering at the 2024 IFSC Pan American Championships,[5] securing her spot on the 2025 USA National Team. [6]
Early life
Clark was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. Initially trying ballet and gymnastics, Clark was introduced to rock climbing at age four during a visit to REI. She began climbing at the age of 7 at Upper Limits Climbing Gym and soon joined Team Upper Limits. She competed in her first climbing competition on November 10, 2012, and attended her first USA Climbing Nationals in January 2013 at age 8. She was sponsored by Five Ten Footwear from a young age.[2]
In 2008, Clark's family moved to Centennial, Colorado. She joined Team ABC in Boulder, Colorado in 2021, training under four-time World Champion Robyn Erbesfield-Raboutou. Ahead of the 2024 USA Climbing National Championships, Clark also trained with coach Ryan Arment and worked alongside World Cup medalist and nine-time USA Climbing National Champion, Alex Puccio.[7]
Competition climbing career
Clark qualified for multiple international events during her youth career but declined to participate in the Youth World Championships. Her international debut came at the 2022 IFSC World Cup in Seoul, South Korea, on May 8, 2022, where she placed 39th in Women's Boulder.[8] The event was won by American teammate Natalia Grossman.[9]
In 2024, Clark became involved in a scoring controversy during the USA Climbing National Team Trials. In the final round, Clark was leading, with a would-be score of 38+, ahead of fellow finalists Olivia Ma and Annie Sanders. However, all finalists' scores were paused at 36 after officials controversially ruled that it was impossible to reach and clip the protection point beyond hold 36 in accordance with Rule 7.11.2 (b)(iv). All finalists disagreed with the call, and Sanders handed Clark her gold medal.[10][11]
At the 2025 USA Climbing National Team Trials, Clark won the Women's Lead category. Her combined result secured her a position on the 2025 U.S. Lead National Team.[12]
Before her pro debut, Clark participated in the 2022 and 2023 BFL Climbing Combine.[13]
| Height | Weight (lb) | Bench Press Max | Bench Press % BW | Hollow Body | Grippul Lift (lb) | Grippul % BW | Vertical Jump (in) | Weighted Pull-Up (lb) | Weighted Pull-Up % BW | 1 Arm Lockoff (lb) | 1 Arm Lockoff % BW | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5′6″ (1.68 m) | 120 (54 kg) | 80 (36 kg) | 0.667 | 0:55:31 | 95 (43 kg) | 0.792 | 22 (0.55 m) | 65 (29 kg)) | 0.540 | 25 (11 kg) | 0.208 | ||
| All values from 2023 BFL Climbing Combine.[14] | |||||||||||||
National Titles
- 2026 Lead 3rd Place – Portland Rock Gym, Beaverton (3rd place)
- 2025 Lead Champion – Mesa Rim Climbing Center, Austin (1st place)
- 2025 Boulder 2nd Place – Mesa Rim Climbing Center, Austin (2nd place)
- 2024 Lead 3rd Place – Sportrock, Rio (3rd place)[15]
- 2023 Lead 2nd Place – YETI Nationals, Vertical View (2nd place)[16]
- 2022 Boulder Champion – Stone Summit, Atlanta (1st place)
International Career
2022 World Cup Season
Clark made her senior debut at the 2022 IFSC World Cup in Seoul, where she placed 39th in Women's Boulder.[17] The event was won by Natalia Grossman, who led a strong U.S. performance at the competition.[9]
In June 2022, Clark competed at the IFSC Boulder World Cup in Brixen, Italy, where she placed 31st in the women's qualification round.[18]
Later in May 2022, she participated in the 2022 IFSC Climbing World Cup in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she placed 17th in the first bouldering event and 31st in the second.[19][20]
2023 World Cup Season
Clark competed in the 2023 IFSC World Cup Boulder World Cup in Prague, finishing 19th among a field of international athletes. The event was won by France's Oriane Bertone, with Clark as the only U.S. athlete in the top 20.[21]
2024 World Cup Season
Clark won her first international gold medal in 2024,[22] taking first place in Women's Boulder at the IFSC Pan American Championships in Santiago, Chile, ahead of Argentina's Valentina Aguado and Canada's Jacqueline Ho.[5][23] The result qualified her for the 2025 IFSC World Cup circuit and the U.S. National Team.[24][25]
In 2024, Clark was among several Team USA climbers who were unable to compete at the IFSC World Cup in Briançon, France, due to a clerical error by USA Climbing. The governing body failed to confirm their participation, resulting in disqualification from the event.[26]
2025 World Cup Season
Clark was selected as one of five American lead climbers on the U.S. team for the 2025 IFSC World Cup season, including the Bali stop, alongside fellow athletes like Zoe Yi and Colin Duffy.[27] Clark opened her 2025 season at the IFSC Boulder World Cup in Keqiao, China, where she placed 24th in the qualification round. She then competed in the Lead World Cup in Wujiang, China, placing 29th.[28][29]
In May, Clark finished 26th in the Lead World Cup in Bali, Indonesia.[30]
She concluded the first half of her season with a 29th-place finish in the Boulder World Cup in Salt Lake City, Utah.[31]
At the 2025 IFSC Boulder World Cup in Prague, Clark finished 21st in the qualification rounds, making the cut for semi-finals. She placed alongside notable climbers such as Japan's Mao Nakamura and Israel's Ayala Kerem in a close four-way tie for the final 21st spot.[32]
In September 2025, Clark competed at her first IFSC Climbing World Championships in Seoul, placing 44th in the women's lead qualification round.[33]
2026 World Cup Season
Clark qualified for both Boulder and Lead National teams, placing third in Lead Women's finals, selected as one of five American climbers on the U.S. team for the 2026 World Climbing Series season, alongside fellow athletes Brooke Raboutou, Melina Costanza, and Nekaia Sanders.[34]
National and International Results
National Results
National Championships and Team Trials
| Year | Event | Discipline | Rank | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | USAC National Team Trials | Lead | 3rd | Portland Rock Gym, Beaverton |
| 2026 | USAC National Team Trials | Boulder | 8th | Portland Rock Gym, Beaverton |
| 2025 | USAC National Team Trials | Lead | 1st | Mesa Rim Climbing Center, Austin |
| 2025 | USAC National Team Trials | Boulder | 2nd | Mesa Rim Climbing Center, Austin |
| 2024 | USAC National Team Trials | Lead | 3rd | Sportrock, Virginia |
| 2024 | USAC National Team Trials | Boulder | 4th | Sportrock, Virginia |
| 2023 | USAC National Team Trials | Lead | 2nd | Vertical View, Idaho |
| 2023 | USAC National Team Trials | Boulder | 4th | Mesa Rim Climbing Center, Texas |
| 2022 | USAC National Team Trials | Boulder | 6th | Stone Summit, Georgia |
| 2021 | YETI National Championships | Boulder | 5th | Salt Lake City, Utah |
Results sourced from USA Climbing Results.
International Results
IFSC Podiums
| Discipline | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bouldering | – | – | 1 | – | – |
| Lead | – | – | – | – | – |
IFSC World Cup and Continental Rankings
Sourced from the International Federation of Sport Climbing[35]
References
- ↑ "Team USA – USA Climbing". USA Climbing. USA Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
- 1 2 "Meet St. Louis' Elite Outdoors Athletes". Terrain Magazine. 28 August 2015. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
- ↑ "Adriene Akiko Clark – Athlete Profile". USA Climbing Result Service. USA Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
- ↑ "Adriene Akiko Clark – Athlete Profile". IFSC. Retrieved 2025-06-07.
- 1 2 "Valentina Aguado trajo dos medallas del Panamericano de Chile". El Diario de la República (in Spanish). 2024-11-26. Retrieved 2025-06-05.
- ↑ Hammer, Zach (2025-04-30). "American Climbers Gearing Up for Next Stop of IFSC World Cup Season". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on 2025-06-11. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ↑ "Coaching Session with Adriene Clark". YouTube. Alex Puccio - ROAP Coaching. 8 October 2023. Retrieved 2025-06-03.
- ↑ "Adriene Akiko Clark – IFSC Athlete Profile". ifsc-climbing.org. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- 1 2 "Climbing World Cup 2022: Seoul bouldering results – full list". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "Controversial Call at USA Climbing Team Trials Sparks Debate". Climbing. Outside Interactive. 15 March 2024. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
- ↑ "USA Climbing Rulebook 2024–2025" (PDF). USA Climbing. USA Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
- ↑ "Clark and Lakhno Finish 1st in Lead at 2025 National Team Trials". USA Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-05.
- ↑ "Adriene Clark Scaling New Heights at the 2022 BFL Climbing Combine". Climbing Combine. Retrieved 2025-06-07.
- ↑ "Adriene Clark: Scaling New Heights at the 2022 BFL Climbing Combine". ClimbingCombine.com. Retrieved 2025-06-07.
- ↑ "2025 National Team Trials - Official Results". USA Climbing Results. USA Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "2023 YETI Nationals - Official Results". USA Climbing Results. USA Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "Adriene Akiko Clark – IFSC Athlete Profile". IFSC. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "IFSC Boulder World Cup Brixen - Report". UKClimbing. 13 June 2022. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "A Recap of the 2022 IFSC Climbing World Cup". Gripped. November 2022. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "IFSC Climbing World Cup Salt Lake City – Program and Live Stream". LACRUX. 20 May 2022. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ Craggs, Robbie (2023-06-05). "Lee and Bertone Win IFSC Boulder World Cup Prague 2023". UKClimbing.com. Retrieved 2025-06-03.
- ↑ "USA Wins 9 Medals at Pan American Championships Santiago 2024". USA Climbing. 2024-11-25. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "Final Boulder Women - Santiago 2024 Pan American Games". YouTube (in Spanish). IFSC. 2023-10-21. Retrieved 2025-06-05.
- ↑ "Doble medalla para Argentina en el Panamericano de Escalada Deportiva". Federación Argentina de Ski y Andinismo (in Spanish). 2024-11-25. Retrieved 2025-06-05.
- ↑ "Meet Team USA – 2025 National Team Roster". USA Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
- ↑ Lewis, Michael (2023-07-21). "USA Climbing Fails to Check In Athletes for World Cup". Climbing.com. Retrieved 2025-06-03.
- ↑ Hammer, Zach (2025-04-30). "American Climbers Gearing Up for Next Stop of IFSC World Cup Season". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "IFSC Results – Wujiang 2025". IFSC. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ↑ Inside Climbing Staff (2025-03-19). "Who Will Lead the IFSC into the LA2028 Olympics?". Inside Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-10.
- ↑ "Bali Lead: It's the Same, but Different". IFSC. International Federation of Sport Climbing. 2 June 2025. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ↑ "Bertone Leads Impressive Field in Salt Lake City Qualification". IFSC. International Federation of Sport Climbing. 20 May 2025. Retrieved 3 June 2025.
- ↑ "From Spain to South Korea, a mix of experience secures semi-final spots". IFSC. International Federation of Sport Climbing. 2025-06-06. Retrieved 2025-06-07.
- ↑ "IFSC Climbing World Championships Seoul 2025 – Women's Lead Qualification Results". IFSC. International Federation of Sport Climbing. September 2025. Retrieved 22 September 2025.
- ↑ Aaron Pardy (2026-03-10). "Here's Who's Joining the USA National Team in 2026 - Gripped Magazine". Gripped Magazine. Retrieved 2026-06-10.
- ↑ "IFSC Competition Results Database". International Federation of Sport Climbing. Retrieved 2025-06-05.