American Rock Climber Scales Taipei 101 Skyscraper Without Ropes

American rock climber Alex Honnold made history yesterday when he climbed the Taipei 101 skyscraper in Taiwan without any ropes, completing an incredible free solo climb of over 1,667 feet.

Honnold is known for his free solo climb of Yosemite National Park's El Capitan, meaning that he completed the entire climb without ropes or safety gear. By climbing the mountain's primary rock face, he ascended over 3,000 feet on camera, culminating in the famed 2018 film Free Solo.

This year, he announced that he would be attempting his next major free solo climb– not out in nature, but in the middle of a busy urban landscape. Honnold confirmed that he would be scaling Taipei 101, the tallest building in Taiwan's capital of Taipei at 1,667 feet tall.

Netflix was quick to begin advertising the event, dubbing it Skyscraper Live, where they would film Honnold climbing the skyscraper on live television. By using the ledges along the corners of the building, he was able to pull himself up, floor by floor, taking him just one hour and 31 minutes to reach the top of the spire atop the skyscraper.

The climb is now the world's tallest urban free solo climb and the first free solo climb on Taipei 101– though there were concerns that the climb might not even take place. Heavy rain on Saturday contributed to a 24 hour delay, but weather permitted the climb to go ahead on Sunday afternoon local time.

Netflix also paid Honnold for the event, though he admitted that it was just six-figures. For the risk he takes – one slip means instant death in Honnold's situation – he and his agent felt like he should have been paid more, but he admitted that he enjoys climbing so much that he would have climbed Taipei 101 either way, even if he had not been part of a documentary.

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Image credit to Netflix