Alex Honnold, the star of the Oscar-winning documentary Free Solo, is set to climb Taipei 101 without ropes in a live Netflix broadcast. The 1,667ft skyscraper will be streamed globally on Skyscraper Live this Saturday at 9 a.m. local time in Taipei. If you want to catch it where you are in Europe, here's what time that translates to locally:
Denmark, Sweden, Norway (CET): 12:00 a.m. Saturday.
United Kingdom (GMT): 1:00 a.m. Saturday.
Honnold has been training for months, and he says the climb won't feel much different from his other ascents. Taipei 101's "bamboo box" design (stacked sections with balconies every eight floors) gives him natural rest points, so the climb is more predictable than it looks. However, just in case, Netflix will run the stream on a 10-second delay.
Of course, the live broadcast has raised some eyebrows. Some have called it "voyeuristic" and "irresponsible," citing the dangers and Honnold's role as a husband and father. Alain Robert, however, the French climber known as "Spiderman," who climbed Taipei 101 on top rope in 2004, says Honnold has carefully planned his limits.
One way or another, we'll find out tonight...