All future Olympian Piper Kelly needs to succeed is pasta, her good-luck sports bra, and a solid hairstyle.
Well, that’s not everything. But as the 24-year-old speed climber prepares to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics in August, she’s focused only on the next climb ahead of her.
Kelly spent much of her climbing career in the Indianapolis area. First at Climb Time, then at Hoosier Heights Indianapolis. Occasionally in her Irvington backyard or basement. Now, she’s based out of Salt Lake City and ready to compete with the best in the world.
This won’t be her first time competing among champions. Kelly regularly competes in international championships, and it was her win during the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, that sent her to the Olympics.
Despite the venue changes, the course remains a constant. Years of practice have enabled Kelly to scale just over 3 stories in less than 7 seconds. One miscalculation and the whole run is a wash, but a perfect move can bring her to gold.
It’s a daunting task, but that’s nothing new for Kelly, who’s learned that pushing boundaries is just a part of life.
Here are some of her thoughts ahead of the 2024 Paris Games:
On music: I’m big on music. I listen to a lot of techno or EDM music. A song I listen to when I’m trying to get in the climbing mood is “Hall of Fame” by the Script a lot of the time, but lately it’s also been “Let it Go” from “Frozen,” funnily enough.
On superstitions: I try not to make it too set in stone. Especially when I’m traveling to different countries. I like to eat pasta the night before a meet. I have a good-luck sports bra. I have certain hairstyles I like to do for certain things. I would say pasta, a good-luck sports bra and my hairstyles are the big three.
On winding down: I go to yoga once in a while. I like to read or curl up and watch Netflix. Right now I’m into sci-fi and fantasy, and I’m reading the Dune series. I know I’m late, but the movies really made me want to read them.
On staying positive: I think having a good support system is important. For me, that’s my coach who lives here in Salt Lake City, my family back home in Indiana and my boyfriend who’s still living where we went to school in Cincinnati.
On being brave: Moving to Utah six weeks before qualifying for the Olympics was a big thing for me. It was not a sure chance that I was going to win those games. I left my social life behind, my family, and had to sign a yearlong lease and commit.
I moved everything out here and bought a car and started to settle here. If I hadn’t qualified, I would be out here away from everyone I know surrounded by my climbing friends who might have been off to the Olympics without me. I’m really glad it worked out how it did.
On something she’ll get around to doing someday: Skydiving.
On heroes and role models: I really love Sha’Carri Richardson on the U.S. track team. She’s an incredible athlete, and she’s confident, not cocky. I would also have to say my mom. She’s a really good example of being hard-working and giving your all to something, which is definitely what I’ve been trying to do.
On climbing: More than half of my waking hours are spent either climbing or thinking about climbing. Maybe 60% to 70%, but actually, sometimes it seeps into my dreams. I guess it’s closer to 80% or 90%.
On structuring life: Training is my first priority. I do work as a coach, but I schedule that around my training, which is kind of the opposite of how that usually works. It really is a full-time job.
On coaches: My dad was my one and the reason I got into speed climbing. Speed climbing is the smallest discipline out of the three (lead climbing, bouldering and speed climbing), and my dad had been my one and only coach until I moved. Now I’m working with coach Albert Ok, who’s not a part of USA Climbing but is a private coach for three out of the four speed climbers going to the Olympics.
On finding an identity: If somebody asked me to say three things about myself, “climber” was always one. I felt a little lost for a bit during recovery (from shoulder surgery).
On becoming a little fish: Most of the time in Indiana I would be one of the strongest people at the gym. I was a big fish in a little pond. Out here, there are at least 10 people stronger than me on any given day in the gym. They’re always pushing me, which is what I needed to grow as a climber.
Watch Kelly and the rest of Team USA’s speed climbers compete in Paris Aug. 5-7. You can watch the games live or on demand, depending on your provider.
This article first appeared on Mirror Indy and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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