Kyra discovered the sport of climbing at a birthday party in 2009 at her local climbing gym in Minnesota. A natural climber since the day she climbed out of her crib (at one year old!), Kyra was instantly hooked and joined the gym’s youth team.
Kyra made Youth Bouldering Nationals her first year competing. But the next year back pain became a major distraction at practice. She consulted a doctor, only to find that she had a 53-degree curve in her spine—idiopathic, adolescent scoliosis. Not willing to let this dampen her climbing dreams, her family sought out a surgeon who supported Kyra’s climbing. To allow some amount of mobility in her back, Kyra and her surgeon decided on fusing 10 vertebrae together, T2-T12, correcting most of her curvature. Kyra believes the surgery was a blessing in disguise and reignited her desire to train and compete. It was only 2 years later that she became Youth National champion and went on to win 4 more youth national titles.
The Olympics were always a dream of Kyra’s, who grew up watching every Olympics with her mom. In 2016 when climbing was officially included in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, suddenly her dream turned into a potential reality. Kyra switched her training and focused on qualifying for the 2020 Games. In 2019, Kyra came in 7th place at the IFSC Combined Qualifier in Toulouse, France, officially earning her invitation to the Tokyo Olympics. A graduate of the University of Minnesota, Kyra eventually plans to go to vet school after she retires from professional climbing. She’s currently a member of the USA Climbing Board of Directors, the USA Climbing Athlete Advisory Committee, the IFSC Athlete commission, the IFSC Pan-American Athlete Commission, the USA Climbing DEI Task Force, and the Team USA Community Ambassadors.
She’s passionate about using her social media platform and position as an Olympic athlete to advocate for athletes and the inclusivity of sport. As public figures and role models she believes that athletes share a unique position that makes their voices incredibly important in the fight for social justice and the progression of sport as a whole.