If the average American is able to name a professional rock climber, it’s more than likely Alex Honnold or Tommy Caldwell. Considering that both climbers have starred in award-winning documentaries chronicling their rocky feats, that’s not too surprising.
But what climber deserves to be added to the list of the sport’s most skilled and accomplished vertical explorers? According to a prestigious award committee, it’s Austrian phenom Barbara “Babsi” Zangerl. The 37-year-old was chosen as the 2025 recipient of the Paul Preuss Prize, an award dedicated to extraordinary achievement in free climbing. (Free climbing means climbing with your hands and feet, as opposed to using ropes and other equipment to ascend the wall.)
By winning the prize, Zangerl joins the hallowed ranks of legendary climbers like Reinhold Messner and Dani Arnold. She’s only the second woman to receive the honor.
“Barbara Zangerl is now considered the best all-around climber in the world. Reason enough for the jury to award her this prize,” the International Paul Preuss Society wrote in a press release (translated from German).
In the last few years, Zangerl has pulled off some of the most impressive climbs in the world. In 2024, she notably became the first person to ever flash Freerider (5.13a), a 3,300-foot, 32-pitch route up El Capitan, ascending the entire route without a fall.
An Astounding Climbing Resume
Among climbers, Zangerl has emerged as one of the most exciting talents of recent years. A prodigy who first climbed with her brother in a gym, she soon proved herself a natural in the sport. Zangerl has since made notable ascents in multiple disciplines, including single-pitch trad.
In 2023, she became only the fourth person to ever send Meltdown (5.14c), one of the world’s most difficult trad climbs. Her other notable ascents include Magic Line (5.14c) and The Path (5.14a).
Along with her partner Jacopo Larcher, Zangerl claimed the second free ascent of Magic Mushroom (5.14a). It’s a notoriously difficult, 28-pitch route up El Capitan.
The duo also made the third-ever free ascent of Eternal Flame (5.13a). One of the hardest big walls in the world, it’s located in a remote part of Pakistan. The climbing duo managed to send the entire route in a single, no-falls push in 2022. That perfect ascent earned a documentary treatment from Reel Rock.
As for the Paul Preuss award, it’s named after a famous climber from Zangerl’s native Austria.
“Paul Preuss was the best free climber of his time, categorically rejecting climbing aids and accepting them only as a safety measure,” according to the IPPG. “‘Ability is the measure of permissibility’ was the maxim of the philosopher, who held a doctorate and championed his climbing ethics through numerous discussions and lectures.”
Since the prize began in 2013, Zangerl is only the second female recipient after 2021 awardee Catherine Destivelle, a ground-breaking French alpinist.
