Renowned American climber Alex Honnold has once again pushed the limits of human endurance and courage, this time by scaling Taipei 101, one of the world’s tallest skyscrapers, without ropes, harness, or safety gear, in Taiwan.
The 508-metre (1,667-foot) tower, famous for its bamboo-inspired design, was conquered by Honnold in one hour and 31 minutes on Sunday.
His daring feat, streamed live on Netflix, captivated millions of viewers worldwide.
Originally scheduled for Saturday, the climb was postponed due to wet weather. Netflix confirmed it had included a brief delay in the live broadcast “should the worst happen.”
“We’ll cut away,” Netflix executive Jeff Gaspin told Variety magazine ahead of the climb. “Nobody expects or wants to see anything like that to happen.”
At the summit, an elated Honnold summed up his achievement in a single word: “Sick.” His time shattered the previous record for scaling Taipei 101 set by French climber Alain Robert, known as “Spiderman,” who took four hours to reach the top in 2004 using ropes and a harness.
Taiwan’s Vice-President Hsiao Bi-khim was among those who hailed the climber’s feat, posting on X, “I admit I would probably feel sick, too, barely able to watch.”
Honnold’s wife was waiting at the top, expressing concern over the strong winds and rising heat during his climb.
Meanwhile, spectators inside the tower offered encouragement as he passed their windows. At one point, fans on the 89th floor were seen cheering and waving at him through the glass, a moment captured and later shared by Honnold and Netflix on Instagram.
Best known for his historic rope-free ascent of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, a climb immortalised in the Academy Award-winning documentary Free Solo, Honnold’s latest achievement further cements his reputation as the world’s most daring solo climber.
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