Oceana Mackenzie is the first Australian athlete to achieve a top ten world ranking in sport climbing - and she's not stopping any time soon.

Photo credit: @vladek_zumr

After a demanding World Cup Boulder series spanning Hachioji, Seoul, Salt Lake City, Prague, Brixen and Innsbruck, Oceana finished ranked seventh. "Honestly it feels amazing to be 7th in the world for boulder this year, but mostly I'm just proud of the progress and confidence I've gained. I'm always more focused on how I felt through each comp rather than the number it gives me (although that's just an added bonus)".

Oceana's best performance was in Brixen, where she qualified for finals to finish in an impressive fifth place. In terms of her strategy, she says that "I learnt new things after every event, so before every comp I change something slightly. My biggest focus after the first World Cup (which didn't go so well for me) was trying to be more confident and getting into my "comp" mindset."

The World Cup Lead series has well and truly now kicked off, with Oceana already improving on her 37th place in Innsbruck to qualify for semi-finals and finish 23rd in Chamonix. 

Photo credit: @lami.victor

Other Australians competing on the lead wall in Chamonix include Campbell Harrison (41st), Dylan Soin (73rd) and Emily Scott (79th). Grace Crowley and Chad Horton were both in action on the speed wall, recording times of 9.03 and 7.02 to finish 39th and 62nd respectively. 

After representing Australia in sport climbing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Oceana has her sights firmly set on qualifying for Paris 2024 and living the Olympic dream a second time. "I'm feeling excited, it's always cool to see the sport I love gaining more recognition. There are multiple selection events, but the one I'm most focused on is the Oceania Championships in November. But for now, all eyes are on the World Cups".  

Photo credit: @vladek_zumr