American rock climber Alex Honnold successfully climbed to the top of the Taipei 101 skyscraper without any safety gear or ropes on Sunday. Spectators cheered as he scaled the 508-meter tower using only the horizontal metal beams for support. Honnold’s daring feat, broadcasted live on Netflix with a 10-second delay, was initially scheduled for Saturday but was postponed due to rainy weather.
The climb, which drew a mix of excitement and concern over the ethical implications of such a high-risk endeavor being televised live, showcased Honnold’s skill and nerve. Known for his ropeless ascent of Yosemite National Park’s El Capitan, Honnold tackled one corner of Taipei 101 by strategically utilizing small L-shaped outcroppings as footholds. Negotiating around large ornamental structures protruding from the tower, he faced the most challenging part on the 64 floors in the middle section known as the “bamboo boxes.”
The skyscraper, with 101 floors, presented a formidable obstacle, but Honnold navigated through the eight segments, each featuring eight floors of steep, overhanging climbing interspersed with balconies for brief rests. While Honnold was not the first climber to conquer Taipei 101, he distinguished himself as the first to achieve the feat without the aid of ropes. French rock climber Alain Robert previously ascended the building on Christmas Day in 2004.
