Getting To Know Oceana Mackenzie

Two time Olympian Oceana Mackenzie is a dedicated comp climber who’s decisively shown what Aussies are capable of on the world stage. She chats with Brooke Nolan about training hard, staying grounded and having fun along the way.

“I climb the best when I’m having fun. I mean, life’s just better when you’re having fun, right?” Oceana Mackenzie—AKA Oce—says with a smile. Speaking to me from Switzerland, she’s recovering from a flu that’s temporarily sidelined her European training regime. But there’s no sign of it dampening her determination. 

That commitment to balancing hard work with joy is at the core of Oceana’s approach to climbing. And it’s clearly working: at just 22, she’s already competed in two Olympic Games and multiple World Cups, carving out her place as a trailblazer for Aussie climbing and quickly inspiring the next generation of climbers.

Oce’s climbing journey began thanks to her older sisters. “My mum had done a little climbing at school, but when my sisters got into it, I wanted to do everything they did,” she says. “Climbing was a healthy outlet for my competitiveness. Definitely better than fighting with my sisters anyway!”

Starting at indoor gyms in her hometown of Melbourne at the age of eight, Oce quickly fell in love with testing herself against the wall. While she explored outdoor climbing during her teenage years, indoors has remained her true home throughout her climbing career.

By 15, she was competing internationally, and in 2016, a scholarship for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games sealed her commitment. “That was the moment I thought, ‘Okay, I’m going to take this seriously and really go for it,’” she says.

Two Olympics: two very different experiences

Oce’s first Olympic appearance was at Tokyo in 2021 (moved from 2020 due to COVID-19). It was the debut of the sport into the Games. But to say the lead-up wasn’t ideal, is like saying a hand jam feels like a warm hug. Coming out of lockdown, with limited training and the weight of Olympic-sized expectations, the whole experience was, as she puts it, ‘overwhelming.’

“Coming out of lockdown, suddenly being on this massive stage, and dealing with all the media attention—it was definitely overwhelming,” she admits. She finished 19th at the event and found herself facing burnout from the experience.

Fast forward to 2024, and Oce’s approach to the Paris Olympics was entirely different. “I tried to treat it like just another World Cup,” she says. That mindset helped her stay calm in qualifiers, where she climbed smoothly and confidently to secure a spot in the finals. “By the finals, it felt bigger and more exciting, but I was able to just focus on the climbing and not get pulled into the hecticness of it all,” she reflects. 

She placed 7th in the Women’s Boulder & Lead final with a combined score of 104.8. If you watched, chances are you were gripping the edge of your seat, just like I was. Watching her climb with such confidence and control was proof of just how far she’s come since Tokyo. 

But reaching these new heights after the burnout from Tokyo required a lot of hard work and reflection—on and off the wall. “After Tokyo, I went to Japan and Korea with my sister, where the main goal was just to enjoy climbing and training again,” she says. “And also to work on my confidence because I was feeling pretty down.”

In the safe space of those trips, she experimented with new techniques for specific boulders, pushing herself to shake things up. “I just kept telling myself, ‘I can do this move’,” she says. And of course, she 100 percent could. 

Oce also gave herself the time to find balance again. “I love travelling, but Japan and Korea specifically,” she says. “The food, the culture, the great matcha, shopping, visiting cafes, running in the local parks.”

Taking the time to enjoy the places she travels to for competitions has become a huge part of Oce’s approach. And it’s made even more special by having her sisters by her side.

“There’s 12 years between Lulu and me, and nine years between May and me,” explains Oce, who is the youngest of six sisters. “They’re with me at a lot of competitions, especially World Cups, and we just hang out—have ice cream, go to the beach between semis and finals. Those moments make me stop and think, ‘Wow, this is a pretty good life.’”

Mental resilience and physical power

When it comes to climbing, even the best have their challenges, and Oce is no exception. While she doesn’t have a single nemesis move, there are definitely a few she’d prefer not to see on the wall when she walks into the arena.

“I try and be quite well-rounded and I love all climbing, but if I see something like a hand jam, it’ll make me nervous—I know I can do it, but I’ll think, ‘Let’s just get this over with so I can enjoy the rest!’” she says.

As for the moves she loves? Oce thrives on power and precision. “I love physical, crimpy boulders,” she says, leaning into the style that plays to her strength and technique.

It’s a style that paid off in her impressive 2024 season. Outside of the Olympics, last year saw achievements that rank among her favourite moments, including her first podium finish at the 2024 IFSC World Cup in Prague.

She went on to finish third in the final round. In the semi-finals, she was one of only two athletes to complete the second boulder—a feat where her love for physical problems definitely came in handy.

Oce’s training regimen is rigorous, encompassing on-wall sessions focusing on bouldering power, coordination, technique, problem-solving, endurance, and lead climbing. But mental training and pre-competition rituals are just as important as physical preparation.

In particular, listening to music and colouring have become unexpected yet essential parts of her pre-comp routine. 

“On the recommendation of my coach I started colouring whilst listening to albums before comps,” she says.” It helps keep her present and avoid overthinking. “I also find that doing my activation session the day before calms me down, or going out for a matcha or something with my sisters—just doing something fun the day before. It’s about enjoying the whole experience.”

Daily breathwork has become another staple, helping her stay grounded and manage any pesky pre-comp nerves. “I actually quite enjoy the nerves though—they mean I really care,” she says.

“And, I usually perform pretty well when I’m nervous. So instead of fighting it, I’ve learned to lean into it.”

She’s also worked hard on embracing failure when it inevitably happens. In climbing, falling short is just part of the process, and it’s important to not let it knock you down.

“It’s about looking at the bigger picture,” Oce says. “I’m not just doing one competition or one session—I have so many more ahead of me. Everyone falls off, everyone has days where they don’t send the project they wanted.”

Her advice? Take what you can from the moment and move forward. 

“There’s always going to be another boulder problem, another route to try. It’s about thinking, ‘Yeah, I didn’t send the climb I really wanted to, but I learned something important from the experience.’ It’s about knowing that every situation has something to teach you, and there’s always another situation coming.”

Life outside climbing

When Oce isn’t scaling walls around the world, she’s soaking up life in Melbourne—“the best city in the world”, she says without hesitation. “I don’t have a strict routine when I’m at home,” she admits. “But a typical day will definitely include spending time with my dogs, Mina (a Shih Tzu cross Maltese) and Mochi (my sister’s French Bulldog), along with exploring cafes, shopping, colouring, reading and cooking.”

Her downtime hobbies are refreshingly simple. But for Oce, nothing will ever beat climbing. It’s her passion, her career, and her lifestyle, all rolled into one. 

“The physical and mental challenge of climbing can be pretty addicting for people,” Oce says. “With a lot of other sports—like running, for example, which I still love—it can feel repetitive. But with climbing, it often doesn’t even feel like a workout. You’re getting that mental challenge, you’re with your friends, there’s banter—it’s just really fun. You’re enjoying yourself, and I think that’s what people love about it.”

And if you’re anything like Oce, it’s also the perfect place to channel that competitive spirit. “You figure out a weakness, work really hard on it, and then see it pay off,” she says. “It’s so satisfying to see progress.”

When asked if she could imagine doing anything else, her answer is an immediate ‘No’. At least, nothing that didn’t involve climbing in some way. 

“We need more women in route-setting, coaching, and leadership roles,” she says. “I think the sport would benefit so much from that.”

While making the world of international sports climbing a nicer place for women to be in is important, Oce also notes that a lot of it comes down to confidence. “A lot of women underestimate themselves, even though they’re more than qualified,” she explains. “It’s really about confidence—which is tough because it’s a societal issue, not just in climbing.”

As for the future, Oce has her sights set on a long career, with a lot of laughs along the way. “I want to be one of the oldest climbers still competing—I want to do competitions for a really, really long time,” she says. “But more than that, I want to enjoy myself. I hope people see me out on the mats and think, ‘She’s having a great time.’ That’s how I want to be remembered.”

Fast Facts

• Favourite Climbing Style: Crimpy, powerful boulders
• Favourite Places to Climb: South Korea and Japan (especially B-Pump Ogikubo in Japan).
• Favourite Drink: Matcha tea
• Go-To Music: K-pop, especially “Bite Me” by ENHYPEN
• Best Climbing Memory: Winning bronze at the Prague World Cup, with her sisters and coach cheering her on.

Biggest Inspiration: Her family and her mentors, James and Claire Kassay. “They were great mentors for me, especially with my mentality for climbing. They really helped shape the way I approach climbing because they emphasised the importance of enjoying it.”

This story originally featured in Vertical Life # 50. Grab your copy here