Standing at the top of the structure, he took a selfie to highlight an achievement that no other climber will likely be able to achieve.
To begin, Honnold had to overcome the base of the skyscraper, made up of 113 meters of inclined steel and glass slab and two 4.3 meter metal structures known as ‘ruyi’, which represented the first major obstacle of the day.
Having overcome that initial stretch—something that took less than twenty minutes—the climber faced the longest and most physically demanding segment: the so-called “bamboo boxes,” eight superimposed modules between approximately the 27th and 90th floors that make up the body of Taipei 101.
Throughout 274 meters of vertical ascent, Honnold displayed all his climbing skills, climbing dynamically amid the cheers and amazed faces of the hundreds of people who gathered around the skyscraper to witness this milestone.
The final phase, considered the most dangerous by the organizers, began upon reaching the upper tower of the building, where the collapses required all the strength of their arms.From there he advanced through the rings to the needle, topped by a small metallic sphere suspended above the void.
The feat makes the North American the first person to climb this structure in the ‘free solo’ modality, as the extreme variant of climbing is known in which no ropes or harnesses are used and in which any error, no matter how minimal, is paid for with death.
Hundreds of spectators gathered at the foot of the 101-story tower to watch the 40-year-old climber embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix.
After an hour and a half, he managed to climb 1,667 feet (508 meters) before triumphantly descending to join his wife, Sanni McCandless Honnold.
In a later press conference, Honnold said that “time is finite” and that people should “make the best use of it.”
“If you work really hard… you can do hard things,” Honnold added.
He later admitted that “starting out, I felt like I was a little more nervous taking off. And then as I went up, I got more and more relaxed. I thought, oh, this is so fun. I mean, that’s why I do it. It was amazing.”
Honnold has conquered some of the most intimidating rock walls in the world and rose to global fame in 2017 after climbing Yosemite’s “El Capitan,” hailed by his peers as the pinnacle of technical difficulty on the massive granite monolith.
It had always been a dream of Honnold’s to add climbing Taipei 101 to his list of accomplishments, he told reporters, adding that his first request had been rejected.He did not offer further details on why this occurred.
“That the project came to fruition more than a decade later… It’s great. What an opportunity, it’s a huge pleasure,” he added.
He added: “Taipei 101 is actually an incredibly family-friendly climbing goal, in the sense that, on most climbs, you go somewhere far away, you have no coverage, you’re gone for months and you live in a tent. I mean, we Facetime with the kids here, we’ll be home, you know, we fly tomorrow. I’m like, oh, it’s pretty chill.”
Honnold is the first person to solo climb Taipei 101, without a rope, harness or safety net, but not the first to reach its peak.
In 2004, Alain Robert, nicknamed “the French Spiderman,” was the first to accept the challenge, but used safety ropes due to rainy conditions.
Sunday’s show attracted hundreds of people, with spectator Richard Bode, 34, calling the event a “once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Benson, 24, told AFP that Honnold was “incredibly brave”, while others, such as Lin Chia-jou, 54, said he was “terrifying” to see.
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te congratulated Honnold in a Facebook post on Sunday, calling the challenge “really emotional.”
“The climb was tense, making hearts race,” he added in the publication.
The event, titled “Skyscraper Live,” was scheduled to air on Netflix on Saturday (01:00 GMT), but was postponed due to bad weather.
Dressed in a red T-shirt and custom-made yellow climbing shoes, Honnold quickly ascended the southeast face of the glass-and-steel building on Sunday, when better weather allowed the climb.
At one point, he climbed onto a platform halfway to greet the fans and spectators who were taking photos.
People watching from inside the building could be seen staring and tapping on the glass as Honnold walked past the closed observation deck on the 89th floor.
Taipei 101 president Janet Chia said on Threads on Saturday that it was heartwarming to learn that fans had traveled from Singapore, Hong Kong and southern Taiwan to see the rise and apologized for the delay in the event.
(With information from AFP and EFE)
