Live updates: Alex Honnold to Free Solo Taipei 101 on Netflix originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Welcome to our coverage of Alex Honnold’s Free Solo climb of Taipei 101. He will be scaling the building without ropes or safety gear.
Honnold is expected to begin his climb at 8 p.m. ET live on Netflix. The event was originally scheduled to take place yesterday, but was postponed to Saturday due to bad weather.
We’ll bring you the latest on his progress in real time Please stay tuned for updates (All times eastern).
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9:44 p.m.
At 1:33:31, Alex Honnold makes hitory standing on top on Taipei 101. He takes a selfie for the moment.
9:40 p.m.
Honnold is at 1:28:24 and above the 101 stories of the building and scaling the ladder up the top. Netflix is playing the moment up with dramatic music and not going with a tight shot.
9:39 p.m.
Honnold had a moment where he took his hands off the building, sending the crowd into near shock.
9:34 p.m.
Honnold turns to the camera and says, “Ready to do some campusing.” This is the art of climbing without using your feet. He made it over the rail of the 101 floor. The wind has picked up.
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9:32 p.m.
Honnold says “Man, I’m tired.” He’s a few 100 feet away from the top and in the final stage of Taipei 101.
9:30 p.m.
Honnold is taking his time on “The Overhangs” as this part of Taipei 101 is more difficult.
9:26 p.m.
Honnold takes a quick break to talk to the broadcast team and hits the most challenging part of Taipei 101 on “The Overhangs.” This is the final stage.
9:21 p.m.
Honnold hit the observation deck of Taipei 101 with Mark Roper and others taking picture. What a surreal moment for him. He’s 1:10:58 into his climb.
9:17 p.m
Honnold is one the second-to-last second of the buliding. He’s moving really well at 1:06:32 in his climb.
9:09 p.m.
Honnold takes a break to clean his shoes and is about 1,300 feet up Taipei 101. He only takes about two minutes and is approaching to 59-minute mark.
9:04 p.m.
Honnold is on the third-to-last major section of Taipei 101 and isn’t slowing down. This is incredible to watch.
9:01 p.m.
Netflix shows host Elle Duncan trying to climb Taipei 101 with ropes and how difficult this is for an average person. This show what Honnold is doing is out of this world.
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8:57 p.m.
Honnold’s wife, Sanni, give him a brief shock as she inside Taipei 101 at his level. The two share a moment before he moves by on the bambo boxes.
8:53 p.m.
Honnold stops for the first period of his climb. He gives a quick update with Elle Duncan and Seth Rollins, who’s at the Netflix desk on the ground. Honnold still looks refreshed and ready to go again. The crowd yells ‘Cheers’ to him.
8:48 p.m.
Honnold is approaching the sixth of 11 sections of the building with the mission now focused on the structure getting wider. He’s approaching his fourth “Dragon” and is working his way up.
8:37 p.m.
Honnold is at the 26-minute mark of his climb. He’s mid-way through the second part of Taipei 101 and the second “Dragon.”
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8:31 p.m.
The internet is starting to react to Honnold’s climb up Taipei 101:
8:28 p.m.
Honnold is approaching the first “Dragon” of Taipei 101, which will be challenging considering the shape and size. He’s at the 16-minute mark.
8:20 p.m.
Honnold is moving his way up Taipei 101 with ease. He’s past the base of the building and moving towards the second of 11 sections.
8:12 p.m.
Honnold takes his first steps onto Taipei 101 and he’s headed up the side of the building.
8:10 p.m.
Honnold says goodbye to his wife, Sanni, walks to the base of Taipei 101 and starts to put on his shoes. He’s minutes away from the start of the climb.
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8:05 p.m.
8:00 p.m.
7:58 p.m.
Alex Honnold has not yet completed a free-solo climb of Taipei 101 — and no one ever has
Honnold, the famously rope-free climber and star of the Oscar-winning documentary Free Solo, is attempting a first-of-its-kind ascent of the 1,667-foot, 101-story skyscraper without ropes, harnesses or a safety net. The live Netflix event, titled Skyscraper Live, was delayed one day from its original Jan. 23 start because of rain, with organizers citing safety concerns related to slick conditions.
If completed, the climb would mark the first true free solo of Taipei 101. French urban climber Alain Robert, known as the “French Spider-Man,” scaled the building in 2004, but did so using a rope at the request of Taiwanese authorities.
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The route Honnold plans to climb is broken into three sections, with the middle portion posing the greatest challenge. The building’s distinctive bamboo-inspired design creates repeated overhangs — some estimated at 10 to 15 degrees — over roughly 64 floors. “Buildings are steeper than most rock faces,” Honnold told Netflix’s Tudum. “Rock that looks vertical usually isn’t — buildings are.”
Honnold is no stranger to redefining what is possible. In 2017, he became the first person to free-solo El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, climbing nearly 3,000 feet of sheer granite without protection. He has also completed the Yosemite Triple Crown in a single push and free-soloed Moonlight Buttress in Zion.
Streaming such a high-risk ascent live is unprecedented. Whether Honnold tops out or turns back, history will be made and viewers everywhere will be watching.
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