# Shauna Coxsey sends Britain's hardest deep water solo

> Two goes on a 8b sea cliff in Wales, and the hardest deep water solo a woman has ever climbed.
- Title: Shauna Coxsey sends Britain's hardest deep water solo
- Summary: Two goes on a 8b sea cliff in Wales, and the hardest deep water solo a woman has ever climbed. Coxsey's second-try send of Olympiad 5.13d is both the fastest…
- Keywords: climbing, deep water solo, shauna coxsey, pembrokeshire, bouldering, Shauna, Coxsey, sends, Britain's, hardest, deep, water
- Source: Gripped Magazine — https://gripped.com/news/shauna-coxsey-climbs-britains-hardest-deep-water-solo
- Author: Aaron Pardy
- Published: 2026-09-11T15:00:53+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: climbing, deep water solo, shauna coxsey, pembrokeshire, bouldering
## First female ascent of Olympiad
Shauna Coxsey made the first female ascent of Olympiad 5.13d (8b), Britain's hardest deep water solo. She needed just two goes, the fastest the route has ever been sent.
## Likely a world first too
It is probably the hardest deep water solo ever climbed by a woman. The previous mark was Julija Kruder on Weatherman 5.13c in Mallorca back in 2018.
## She expected a fight
Coxsey had wanted the line since first seeing it, and went in braced for a long battle with hard moves and awkward logistics.

> Olympiad is one of the most captivating climbs I've ever seen. I wanted to climb it from the moment I first saw it, but I was braced for a battle.
## A route few have touched
Neil Gresham established Olympiad in Pembrokeshire, Wales in 2012. It was the country's hardest deep water solo then and still is, with only a handful of repeats.
## A career built on V14
In 2014 she became the third woman ever to climb V14, with New Base Line in Magic Wood. Many more followed, including Hazel Grace, Fotofobia SDS and Mito SDS.
## A loaded 2026 season
She returned to competition for the first time since Tokyo 2020 and won gold at the final CWIF, then sent hard boulders in Fontainebleau and Quiet Storm V14 in Ticino.
## Key takeaway

Coxsey's second-try send of Olympiad 5.13d is both the fastest ascent the route has seen and likely the hardest deep water solo ever done by a woman.