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Freja Shannon

Freja Shannon lives for climbing in all its many forms—so much that she never really thought about how dangerous it could be. It took an accident to show her that not every risk is worth taking.

Freja Shannon

Whether it’s ice climbing, mixed routes, sport climbs, or alpine lines, Freja follows the seasons and climbs with her whole heart. She grew up in Sweden and Ireland and moved to Chamonix at age 19. For a few years, she scraped by with odd jobs—babysitting, bartending, or working in a cemetery and a nursing home—until she had enough money for her next climbing trip. She’s now 28 and training to become a certified mountain guide.

The connection glitches briefly, then Freja Shannon appears on the video call. Her face and hands are marked with white streaks. Chalk? Of course. Ever since she discovered climbing at 19, she’s spent every spare minute on the rock. Her favorite place to climb? Around Chamonix, the town she now calls home. Moving there was never the plan. Originally, she just wanted to spend a ski season in Andorra, then she spontaneously hopped on a 24-hour bus to France.

The snow melted, but Freja stayed—climbing her first routes and canceling all her summer plans. "I finally felt like I had a home," she says. Half Irish, half Swedish, Freja moved between the two countries every two years. "I always felt a little different from other people because of that." But she feels at home in the climbing community in Chamonix. "There are the coolest people here, from all over the world, doing every kind of sport. I immediately knew I wanted to be part of it."

There are the coolest people here, from all over the world, doing every kind of sport.

Freja Shannon about Chamonix

A life without climbing? "Hard to imagine," says Freja. "For a long time, my relationship with climbing was full of fear and pressure to perform. Missing one or two days felt like a disaster. My mood and self-worth were entirely dependent on it." So it’s no surprise that, even after falling ten meters onto a rock ledge, she didn’t want to turn back. When her climbing partner—a close friend and mountain guide—took away her gear and called a helicopter, she was furious. "I wanted to climb that route so badly. I remember that January morning very clearly: the sky was pink, the sun was coming up... it was perfect." Fortunately, her climbing partner made the right call. Diagnosis: broken back. Three weeks in bed.

Missing one or two days of climbing felt like a disaster. MY mood and selfworth were entirely dependent on it.

Freja Shannon

Until her final X-ray, Freja managed to stay calm. She met up with friends, painted, listened to podcasts. "I realized life can be good even when you’re not constantly in the mountains chasing success. It was important to just let go for a while. These days, I’m better at prioritizing and asking myself: Is this big alpine route really worth it in bad conditions? The answer is no. I’ve already done that—and got hurt." Still, just three months later, Freja was back on the wall, thereby proving something to the world, and most of all to herself. "I didn’t want to let fear build up. Climbing means so much to me, and I never wanted that to change."

But a full comeback will have to wait—Freja is deep into her mountain guide training. One climbing goal does remain firmly in sight: Ave Cesar, an unprotected trad route in the Swiss Alps. A razor-sharp rock needle juts into the sky, split by a long, splintered crack. It looks like something out of Patagonia. Freja has met Ave Cesar once before: she attempted the route a year ago, unsuccessfully. "I thought if I pulled it off after the accident, it would be great for my self-confidence. I only managed the first pitch because I was so afraid of falling. I just clung to the rock."

She didn’t used to feel that kind of fear. "I was pretty naïve. I just loved climbing and never thought about the danger. Looking back, I’m surprised that nothing ever happened." Her accident made one thing clear: this sport is intensely mentally demanding. Now, she sees potential dangers everywhere, which makes it all the more important to have someone by your side you trust completely.

Freja Shannon (left), Ariane Moreau (right)

For Ave Cesar, that person is Ariane Moreau. "She’s my best friend in the whole world. With Ariane, I can be completely myself." They met ten years ago as roommates in Chamonix, and Ariane was the one who first taught Freja how to climb. "Ave Cesar was such a cool project to take on together, especially since it resulted in a film we can watch when we're old." It was Ariane’s first route of this kind. Both women climbed at their limit, though at very different grades. The experience was equally intense.

Has Freja made peace with the accident? Almost. There’s just one thing left unfinished: the route she fell on still lingers in her mind. She and the same partner are already planning a return this winter. "I left my two favorite cams up there. I’ve got to get them back."

EOFT 2025 Program

Freja's Back is part of the EOFT 2025/26 film program.