Magnus Rognan Midtbø (born 18 September 1988) is a Norwegian rock climber, former competition climber, and YouTube video blogger. He was born in Bergen, Norway. He retired from competition climbing in 2017.
Midtbø started climbing in 2000 at 12 years of age after his mother enrolled him in a class. After just one year of climbing, he won the Norwegian Youth Championship, and a year later, in 2002, he on-sighted his first sport climbing route ÃÂgletryne at the Sageveggen rock wall, near Bergen.
In August 2010, he completed the route Ali Hulk sit start extension in Rodellar, Spain. The first ascent was made by in 2007. The grade was initially proposed at , but was later downgraded to 9a+/b, and then further to in 2023.
In May 2013, Midtbø returned to Rodellar to on-sight the sport climbing route Cosi fan tutte which is graded at . , the highest-ever climbing grade to be on-sighted is just one grade higher at . In March 2015, he redpointed Papichulo at Oliana at .
In 2005, Midtbø won the World Youth Championships in Beijing, China. After graduating from high school in 2007, Midtbø moved to Innsbruck, Austria, where he trained with other leading competition climbers including David Lama, Jakob Schubert, and Anna Stöhr. Midtbø was particularly impressed by Lama.
Midtbø retired from competitive climbing in May 2017, saying: "I still get motivated just by climbing. I think some people need a specific goal, but IâÂÂve never felt like I needed one. I mean it sounds really cheesy, I know. I just love climbing. I love being in the nature. I love the feeling of feeling free, but it is like that you know. I donâÂÂt know. I like the whole lifestyle, I like travelling, I like climbing, I like trying hard, and most of all, I like the feeling of feeling really fit and strong, the feeling of being able to climb anything."
Midtbø runs an eponymous YouTube channel, which has over 3.42 million subscribers as of March 2026.
In 2013, Magnus Midtbø participated in a German TV show Der Deutsche Meister (the German Champion) as the international contestant in the Reckstangenklettern (salmon ladder) challenge. Midtbø beat the German contestant.
In 2016, Midtbø was criticized for publishing a picture of himself hanging off the Trolltunga rock formation in Norway. He was wearing a safety harness but local police officers were concerned the stunt might inspire others to replicate it without taking proper safety precautions.
In January 2020, Magnus Midtbø represented Team Europe in '.
In 2022, Magnus uploaded one of his most viral videos where he documented his experience free solo climbing with Alex Honnold.
His sister, Hannah Midtbø (born 1990), is also a professional climber. She won the Nordic Championships (NM) in the lead climbing discipline in 2006 and has been a bouldering competitor at various IFSC World Cups and European Championships.
World Games record:
IFSC Climbing World Youth Championships
European Youth Cup Winner: 2005, 2006, 2007