Prominent LGBTQ+ climbers from across climbing history.
This list highlights climbers who are openly LGBTQ+ and have made notable contributions to climbing through their achievements, visibility, advocacy, or cultural impact.
Entries are listed in no particular order. They focus on each climber’s identity, coming out journey, representation, or influence within the climbing community, while their main profile can cover broader climbing achievements.
Got any corrections? Send them to corrections@climbing-history.org
7 entries on the list.
| # | Climber | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Campbell Harrison |
Campbell Harrison is an Australian competition climber who became the first openly gay climber to compete in Olympic climbing at Paris 2024, a major milestone for LGBTQ+ visibility in the sport. After homophobic comments were left under an official Olympics Instagram post featuring Harrison kissing his boyfriend Justin, he spoke out publicly in defence of queer athletes and representation:
References |
| 2 | Carson Crane |
Carson Crane is an American mountaineer who became the first openly LGBTQ+ person to complete the Seven Summits in 2013. References[1] https://abcnews.go.com/US/reaching-heights-meet-1st-openly-lgbt-person-climb/story?id=78507530 |
| 3 | Cat Runner |
Cat Runner is a trans woman and winner of The Climb (2023). She is founder of the Queer Climbers Network and co-founder of Trans Climbers Belong, helping build visibility and community for LGBTQ+ climbers. References |
| 4 | John Menlove Edwards |
John Menlove Edwards was a pioneering British rock climber of the 1930s, responsible for many influential first ascents in Snowdonia and widely regarded as one of the great writers in climbing literature. Menlove was gay, and lived at a time when homosexuality was criminalised in Britain, a reality that has become an important part of how his life and legacy are understood. References[1] https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/series/literature/mountain_literature_classics_menlove-15022 |
| 5 | Jordan Cannon |
Jordan Cannon is an American big wall climber known for fast ascents and linkups in Yosemite. He publicly came out as gay on his 27th birthday in 2021, saying climbing had helped him find confidence and pride after growing up without queer role models. Since then, he has become a visible advocate for LGBTQ+ representation in climbing, writing about the need for openly gay climbers in alpinism and helping found Queer Ascent. References[2] Birthday coming out Instagram post https://www.instagram.com/p/COXoEEDDgTP/ [3] Runout Podcast coming out episode https://runoutpodcast.com/index.php/2021/05/03/runout-61-jordan-comes-out/ [4] So the World Can See You (2024 article) https://hiddencompass.net/story/so-the-world-can-see-you/ |
| 6 | Lor Sabourin |
Lor Sabourin is a non-binary American trad climber known for hard crack climbing, including becoming the first out non-binary person to climb 5.14 trad. Sabourin has spoken about the importance of representation and visibility for LGBTQ+ climbers. References |
| 7 | Taylor Parsons |
Taylor Parsons is a trans woman and the first Australian to climb V15. Taylor spent many years as an elite climber while hiding her identity, including from herself, and has since transitioned. On her Jam Crack Climbing Podcast episode, Taylor told her deeply personal story about identity, climbing, transition, and motherhood, including discussion of suicide and self-harm. References[1] Podcast with Niall Grimes, originally recorded in 2021 and then re-released in 2025 https://open.spotify.com/episode/5NHG7EfwMMQnphpUyAIm2Z |