A little girl scales the tree in her backyard. Reaching for the branches above her, she pulls herself higher and higher. Finally, she settles on a wavering branch where she can gaze at the lush grass below her. She inhales the refreshing air around her and sighs with satisfaction.

“Julia, get down from that tree!” her mother shouts from the ground. 

The girl lowers herself from the tree until her feet begrudgingly touch the ground. She bitterly trudges inside her house.

This was the beginning of senior Julia de la Paz’s rock climbing journey. 

Julia de la Paz was the first climber from St. Louis to win the USA Climbing: Bouldering Youth National Championship. She has competed in the World Championships for youth competitive climbing and bouldering as well. She has been climbing competitively since the age of 6, and now, she can’t imagine her life without it. 

“I’ve definitely found my community through climbing,” Julia said. “My entire life is centered around the sport.” 

After gaining 11 years of competitive climbing experience, Julia has cultivated a positive mindset when climbing for competitions. 

“When I first started, I didn’t really know what was happening,” Julia said. “I was just excited to climb and get on the wall. I didn’t really know enough about it to be nervous. By the time I [got older], I had already competed so much that I [didn’t feel as] nervous by the time I got to that point.”

Along with teaching her how to manage her nerves during a competition, Julia’s climbing journey has aided her in developing her overall character.

“Climbing has helped me gain a lot more confidence,” Julia said. “[It] shapes a lot of who I’ve become as a person.”

Julia has developed a deeper understanding of the value of innovation in climbing as well. As she competes in higher-level competitions, these skills will be essential for her personal success.

“[You should be] able to look at a climb and figure out how to do it in the most efficient way possible, as opposed to trying to brute your way through it and pull hard,” Julia said. “The best climbers are the smartest climbers, the ones who are able to get to the top of the wall using as little force as possible.” 

Julia’s coach, Meghan McDonald, has been teaching Julia for almost two years over Zoom and is one of the coaches from a training team named CLMB IQ from Denver, CO. She has enjoyed witnessing Julia’s use of analytical thinking during practices and competitions. 

McDonald has been able to watch Julia demonstrate perseverance in competitions, such as during Julia’s last national competition.

“She was struggling a little bit [with] a problem,” McDonald said. “She’s usually incredibly composed, but she had a moment of utter frustration. It was actually nice to see her talk to herself a little bit, like ‘Let’s go Julia. Let’s do this.’ While she didn’t successfully get that problem, she took that energy level to the next boulder she got on which was [extremely] hard. Watching her facial expressions when she decided that it was doable, even though it was really hard, was a great memory of that recognition of confidence in herself.”

Julia has been able to prove her dedication to the sport as she trains for competitions with a rigorous schedule. 

“I climb six to seven times a week,” Julia said. “I train at the climbing gym [for] probably around three hours a day and then train at a weightlifting gym [for] two hours a day. So I’m typically working out about five hours a day and six days a week, depending on competitions and periodization.” 

Julia has not only been able to demonstrate her dedication towards climbing through her training schedule, but she has demonstrated her commitment through the online lessons that she takes with her coach as well. 

“[Working remotely with a coach] takes a lot of personal motivation,” McDonald said. “It’s hard to be consistent when you don’t have your peers pushing you, so the fact that she shows up and literally does every single thing I ask her to do [proves that she works her hardest] all the time.” 

McDonald feels grateful to have watched Julia grow both as a climber and as an individual, even through virtual lessons.

“She’s gotten physically stronger, but also mentally stronger,” McDonald said. “Her confidence in her ability to do moves that she once would have thought were impossible has just skyrocketed and she’s been able to bring [that confidence] to competition and training. You can see it in the way that she approaches climbs and competitions.”

Julia would not be able to dedicate herself as much to the sport without the passion that she has for it. One of the main things that has fueled her interest in climbing is the variety.

“There’s a lot of different ways you can dedicate yourself to the sport, whether it’s indoor climbing, outdoor climbing, competition climbing, bouldering, sport climbing or speed climbing,” Julia said. “It’s never boring. There’s always something new to explore and push your limits with.” 

Julia’s sister, freshman Addie de la Paz, has been rock climbing for seven years. She currently climbs at Upper Limits Rock Climbing Gym.

“[Julia is] the one that got me into it,” Addie said. “She [had] been climbing for a while and eventually, I thought I would give it a shot. I’ve really liked it ever since.”

Addie has been able to witness her sister’s dedication towards climbing as well.

“[It’s been amazing to watch] her get older and become so focused and passionate about the sport,” Addie said.

After committing so much time and energy to rock climbing throughout her life, Julia hopes to continue competition on the elite circuit. She also plans to align her climbing interests with her academic and career paths.

“I plan on majoring in kinesiology, which is the study of movement in [a] sort of biological context,” Julia said. “I’m [going into] pre-physical therapy. That career would go hand-in-hand with my goals in the sport. Getting an understanding of injury prevention, training [and] efficiency would be very beneficial to my career.”

Addie believes that rock climbing will continue to be a major aspect of Julia’s future.

“Climbing will always be a big part of her life,” Addie said. “It always has been since a really young age and that’s something that she really can’t lose. Her passion and her excitement will never really die.” 

Julia intends to keep it that way.

“I am applying to schools mostly in the Rocky Mountain area, that way, I end up living in a place with a large climbing community and a lot of facilities [with] access to outdoor climbing,” Julia said. “I plan on climbing for the rest of my life.”

Gallery • 7 Photos

Phuc Nguyen

Senior Julia de la Paz climbs in the Red River Gorge. Julia climbed the Snooker 5.13a route. "Topping out a boulder is always super exciting," Julia said."There's a lot of satisfaction that comes with getting all of the pieces to flow together and to find that success."