Competitive Climbing
Alt text: The 2026 ParaCliffHangers team gathered together at Paraclimbing National Championships in Katy, Texas, with athletes, callers, aides, and volunteers in front of the competition wall.
Twelve medals and four national titles from Katy, Texas.
50+ climbers, callers, aides, volunteers, and family in Katy
10 first-time competitors
At ParaCliffHangers, competing is for anyone who wants to try it. Every year we bring the largest community in the country to USA Climbing's Para Climbing National Championships, and we cover what it actually costs to get there — USAC membership and registration, lodging, support through classification, and a trained caller for every blind athlete who needs one.
Like everything we do, this is community-first. More than fifty of us made the trip to Katy this year, from eight chapters across seven states. Ten of our competitors had never climbed at a National Championship before, and four of them medaled.
You don't need experience, a classification, or a plan to compete with us. Scroll down to see how our climbers did this year, and to find out how to join the team!
Two climbers in purple ParaCliffHangers t-shirts sit side by side on the padded floor of a climbing gym, smiling at the camera. The man on the left grins and flexes his bicep. The woman on the right has long gray-brown hair and a warm smile.
How We Did in 2026
National Champions
Emeline Lakrout, Women's B1
Andrew Martinez, Men's and Open B3
Ben Mayforth, Men's and Open RP2
Emily Seelenfreund, Women's RP2
Silver
Jessica Semmel, Women's B2
Phoebe Barkan, Women's B3
Rayaan Hassan Mohammadi, Men's and Open B3
Stephen Sattel, Men's and Open Advanced
Emyle Watkins, Women's Intermediate
Bronze
Ben Schuler, Men's and Open B1
Max Gayford, Men's and Open B3
Madz Yu-Phelps, Women's Intermediate
A Clean Sweep in B3
In Men's and Open B3, every single medal went to a PCH climber. Andrew Martinez took the national title, Rayaan Hassan Mohammadi took silver, and Max Gayford took bronze. They train in gyms on opposite sides of the country and shared a podium in Texas.
Phoebe Barkan and Jessica Semmel did the same thing internationally a few months later, taking silver and bronze together in Women's B3 at the opening round of the World Climbing Para Series in Salt Lake City.
What We Handle
Competing costs money that has nothing to do with climbing, so we take as much of it off our athletes' plates as we can.
We reimburse USAC membership and registration fees for climbers who qualify for assistance, and cover lodging up to $80 a night in an accessible room block. We pair every blind athlete who needs one with a trained caller. We're there in person for classification, which happens in the days before the comp and decides which category an athlete can compete in. We match roommates, run carpools from both Houston airports, feed everybody at a team dinner the night before, and keep snacks coming through both days of the comp.
This year we funded 100% of the athletes who asked us for help getting to Nationals.
Friends gather around high-top tables on an outdoor patio at night, smiling at the camera after the full team dinner.
Understanding the Categories
Seen from below, a blindfolded climber wearing a purple ParaCliffHangers shirt and race bib reaches high on a tall competition wall, just beneath the sign marking the top of the route.
Paraclimbers compete in categories based on how their disability affects climbing, so everyone's up against a similar challenge on the wall:
B — Blind and visual impairment. B1 and B2 climbers work with a sighted caller on the ground
AL — Seated and campus climbing
AU — Arm limb difference
RP — Range and power
Open — All levels
Y — Youth
Intermediate and Advanced — Development categories for climbers who aren't classified yet
Get Involved
Ready to join? Fill out the application to be selected!
Sources
Fund an Athlete and help them get to nationals this year
All twelve placements come from USA Climbing's official recap, "25 Para Climbing National Champions Crowned in Katy," published 1 March 2026. The Salt Lake City results come from World Climbing's recap of the opening round of the 2026 World Climbing Para Series, 17 May 2026. The first-timer count comes from the 2026 Competitive Team Master Spreadsheet.