Patissier started climbing at age 5 or 6 with her parents. At 14 she practised mountaineering in
Chamonix and also
slalom and
downhill skiing. In 1986 at the age of 19, she won the first French official
climbing competition, taking place in the sportshall in
Vaulx-en-Velin only steps from her highschool, climbing barefoot. After this she devoted herself full-time to climbing and in 1988 became both the first woman to climb an
8b (
Sortilèges at
Cimaï) and French champion. She subsequently won this title a further 3 times. ==Personal life==