Alain Robert


Alain Robert is a French rock climber and urban climber, from Digoin, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France. Known as "the French Spider-Man" or "the Human Spider," Robert is famous for his free solo climbing, scaling skyscrapers using no climbing equipment except for a small bag of chalk and a pair of climbing shoes.

Strategy

Because authorities did not normally give him permission for such dangerous exploits, Robert would appear at dawn on the site of whichever giant skyscraper he had chosen to climb. His exploits attract crowds of onlookers who stop to watch him climb. As a consequence, Robert has been arrested many times, in various countries, by law enforcement officials waiting for him at the end of his climb. In recent years, however, Robert has done his climbs with permission and sponsorship.
His rock-climbing physical training and technique allow him to climb using the small protrusions of building walls and windows. Many of his climbs provide him no opportunity to rest and can last several hours. He sometimes has a small bag of climbing chalk powder fastened around his waist.

Career

Robert has climbed landmarks including the Burj Khalifa, Eiffel Tower, the Sydney Opera House and the Montparnasse Tower as well as other of the world's tallest skyscrapers. In 1997 he climbed the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia but was arrested at the 60th floor, 28 floors below the top. In 1999 he climbed the Sears Tower, the second man to do so after Dan Goodwin. In June 1999 Robert climbed the Marriott Hotel in Warsaw and in 2000 he climbed the high Luxor Obelisk in Paris.
In February 2003, he legally climbed the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, UAE, watched by about 100,000 spectators. It became more frequent for Robert to be paid to scale buildings as part of publicity efforts. In May 2003, he was paid approximately $18,000 to climb the Lloyd's building to promote the premiere of the movie Spider-Man on the British television channel Sky Movies. On 19 October 2004, he scaled the headquarters of the French oil company Total while wearing a Spider-Man costume.
Robert scaled Taipei 101 on 25 December 2004, a few days before its grand opening as the tallest building in the world. The climb was legal, part of the week's festivities. The skyscraper's outwardly slanting sides posed no apparent difficulty for him, but heavy rain resulted in a climb lasting four hours—double his estimate.
On 11 June 2005 he climbed the Cheung Kong Centre in Hong Kong, scaling to reach the top of the 62-story tower.
On 1 September 2006, he climbed the tallest building in Lithuania and the Baltic States – Europa Tower,, in Vilnius. Wearing a black suit and using a safety rope, which he detached several times, he reached the observation deck of the building,, in 40 minutes. In 2006 he also climbed Torre Vasco da Gama in Portugal as part of an advertisement for Optimus, a national mobile operator. He finished the year climbing the Santa Fe World Plaza in Mexico City on 7 December 2006.
On 23 February 2007, he legally climbed the headquarters building of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority on the coast of Abu Dhabi.
On 20 March 2007, he again climbed the Petronas Twin Towers, marking the tenth anniversary of his previous ascent of this building. Upon reaching the 60th floor, he allowed himself to be apprehended. He flew the Malaysian flag and drew applause from waiting police, fire crew and media representatives before handing himself in. He was handcuffed and escorted off the premises before being driven to a police station.
On 31 May 2007 he scaled the 88-story Jin Mao Building in Shanghai, China's then-tallest building, once again wearing a Spider-Man costume. He was later arrested and jailed for five days before being expelled from China. In November 2007 Robert was invited by the local government of Zhangjiajie, a scenic region in the southern province of Hunan, to climb the Tianmen mountain to boost the profile of the region and bring in tourists.
On 4 September 2007, he climbed the Federation Tower office building in Moscow,. He was detained by police afterwards.
On 18 December 2007 he climbed the 29-story Portland House office building in London. It took him just over 40 minutes. Police taped off the area and later arrested him for criminal damage and wasting police time.
On 15 April 2008, he climbed the 60-story Four Seasons Place in Hong Kong. The police and four fire engines were standing by and it took him almost 1 hour to reach the top. He stated that his climb was intended to increase awareness of global warming.
On 5 June 2008, he climbed the New York Times Building in New York City. He unfurled a banner with a slogan about global warming and was then arrested by police on the roof. The banner read "Global warming kills more people than 9/11 every week.". On the same day a second person, Renaldo Clarke, also climbed the New York Times Building.
On 17 February 2009, he once again climbed the Cheung Kong Centre in Hong Kong, taking 40 minutes to reach the top of the 62-story tower. He unfurled a banner reading "onehundredmonths.org" while climbing.
On 2 April 2009, during the 2009 G-20 London summit, he climbed to the 9th floor of the Lloyd's building and unfurled a 100-foot banner declaring that there were 100 months left to save the planet.
On 2 June 2009, he climbed to the 41st floor of the RBS Tower in Sydney, Australia before returning to the ground. He was arrested as he finished his descent.
On 1 September 2009, one day after Malaysia celebrated its 52nd Independence Day and after two arrests in 1997 and 2007, Alain Robert finally made it successfully to the top of the Petronas Twin Towers. He started at 6:00 am local time and reached the top at 7:40 am local time without attracting the attention of the public. He celebrated his climb by standing with his arms outspread on the pinnacle of one of the Twin Towers. He was later fined RM2000 in default of two months jail at the Kuala Lumpur magistrate's court after he pleaded guilty to criminal trespass for scaling the Petronas Twin Towers.
On 28 March 2011 Robert climbed the tallest building in the world, the 828-meter Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai, taking just over six hours to complete the climb. However, he used a harness in accordance with safety procedure.
On 4 September 2011 he legally climbed the 240-meter tall central tower of Moscow State University, during a 2-hour 4D show by David Atkins, in which the university was used as a projection screen.
On 14 October 2011 he climbed the InterContinental Bucharest in Romania.
On 12 April 2012, he set a Guinness World Record for climbing the 300m-high Aspire Tower in Doha, Qatar in the fastest time.
On 21 June 2012, he legally climbed the 110-metre high Mauritius Telecom tower in Mauritius as part of an advertising campaign for the launching of 4G cellular technology by the telecommunications operator. He was aided by safety ropes, harnesses and suction cups.
In November 2012 Robert was spotted inside The Shard in London. The building's owners subsequently obtained an injunction preventing Robert from ever returning.
On 27 March 2014 he climbed the Tour Ariane outside Paris in 45 minutes. Onlookers and police gathered to watch his climb. He was arrested by police and later released without being charged.
On 12 April 2015 he climbed the Cayan Tower in Dubai, a 307-meter tall twisted building, in 70 minutes.
On 23 April 2016 he climbed the Esentai Tower in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The Esentai Tower is the second highest building in Kazakhstan; it is 162 meters tall and is used as the Ritz Carlton Hotel and for offices.
On 25 November 2017 he climbed the Torre Agbar, a 38-storey skyscraper in Barcelona, Spain.
On 25 October 2018 he climbed the Heron Tower, a 46-storey skyscraper in London.
On 29 January 2019, he climbed the G.T. International Tower, a 181-meter tall skyscraper in Manila. He was arrested upon finishing his descent.
On 16 August 2019, he once again climbed the Cheung Kong Centre in Hong Kong. He hung a banner with the Hong Kong and China flags above a handshake near the top of the building.
On 28 September 2019, he climbed the Skyper building, a 153-meter tall skyscraper in Frankfurt. He was arrested upon finishing his descent.

Notable climbs

The table below contains the notable structures climbed by Alain Robert.
LocationBuildingDateHeightNotes
Sydney, AustraliaSydney Tower1997
Sydney, AustraliaSydney Opera House1997
Sydney, AustraliaSydney Harbour Bridge1997
Sydney, AustraliaRBS Tower2 June 2009Descended to ground. Arrested and fined A$750
Sydney, AustraliaLumiere building30 August 2010Arrested at the top. Took about 20 minutes to climb the 57-story building
Rio de Janeiro, BrazilHotel Vermont1996
Montreal, CanadaCrown Plaza Hotel1999
Montreal, CanadaPlace de la Cathédrale
Hong KongFour Seasons Hotel2008
Hong KongThe Far East Finance Centre1996
Hong KongThe Cheung Kong Centre2009
Hong KongThe Cheung Kong Centre2005
Tianmen Mountain, ChinaHeaven's Gate2007A commemorates his feat
London, EnglandOne Canada Square18 October 2002Abandoned halfway due to rain
London, EnglandOne Canada Square1995
London, EnglandLloyd's building2 April 2009Climbed to the 9th floor. Unfurled a 100 ft banner.
London, EnglandPortland House18 December 2007Arrested. 40-minute climb.
ParisEiffel Tower1996/97
Paris, FranceGrande Arche at La Défense1999Failed due to heat, rescued by firemen
Paris, FranceThe Luxor Obelisk in Place de la Concorde1999
Paris, FranceTour Montparnasse1995
Paris, FranceTour Crystal at Front de Seine2005
Paris, FranceTour Crystal at Front de Seine1996
São Paulo, BrazilFIESP 1996Arrested on top
Paris, FranceMercurial Towers at Bagnolet1995
Paris, FranceTour Total19 October 2004Wore a Spider-Man costume
Paris, FranceTour Total20 March 2014
Paris, FranceAriane building8 October 2009No formal charges were brought against him
Frankfurt, GermanyDresdner Bank Tower1995
Milan, ItalyBanca di Milano building1995
Tokyo, JapanShinjuku Center Building1998
Warsaw, PolandMarriott Hotel1999
Johannesburg, South AfricaIBM Tower1998
Abu Dhabi, UAENational Bank of Abu DhabiFeb 2003A legal climb. Watched by about 100,000 spectators.
Abu Dhabi, UAEThe Etisalat building2005
Abu Dhabi, UAEADIA Headquarters Building2007
New York City, United StatesNew York Times Building5 June 2008Unfurled global warming banner. Arrested by police.
New York City, United StatesEmpire State Building1994
Chicago, United StatesWillis Tower1999Arrested on top
San Francisco, United StatesGolden Gate Bridge1996
Philadelphia, United StatesBlue Cross Tower1997
Las Vegas, United StatesLuxor Hotel1996
Tampere, FinlandHotel Ilves2003
Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaPetronas Tower 120 March 1997Arrested at the 60th floor
Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaPetronas Tower 220 March 2007Arrested at the 60th floor
Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaPetronas Towers1 September 2009Stood atop the highest point of the tower, fined MYR 2000
Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, MalaysiaSabah Foundation Building1997
Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaMelia Hotel1997For fundraising
SingaporeOverseas Union Bank Centre2000Arrested at the 21st floor
SingaporeSuntec Tower One2008
Republic of ChinaTaipei 1012004Climbed as part of opening event. Tallest building in the world at the time of ascent.
Caracas, VenezuelaParque Central Torre2002
Barcelona, SpainTorre Agbar2007
Barcelona, SpainTorre Agbar2006
Lisbon, PortugalTorre Vasco da Gama2006Optimus-sponsored legal climb to promote a phone.
Lisbon, Portugal25 de Abril Bridge6 August 2007Arrested
Mexico City, MexicoSanta Fé World Plaza Corporate Tower2006
Bratislava, SlovakiaSlovak Radio Building12 April 2007Took less than 20 minutes
Shanghai, ChinaJin Mao Building31 May 2007Arrested, expelled from China
Moscow, RussiaWest Federation Tower4 September 2007Detained by police.
São Paulo, BrazilEdifício ItáliaFebruary 2008
Beirut, LebanonPhoenicia HotelOctober 2008
Jakarta, IndonesiaThe City Tower12 November 2008
Jakarta, IndonesiaBakrie Tower26 March 2012
Pune, IndiaThe Amanora Tower28 February 2010Took less than 12 minutes
ParisGDF Suez building7 April 2010Arrested at the top
SingaporeSingapore Flyer5 November 2010First person to climb around the world's tallest observatory wheel.
Dubai, UAEBurj Khalifa28 March 2011Legal climb, partial use of safety harness. Tallest building in the world at the time of ascent.
Doha, QatarAspire Tower12 April 2012Set a Guinness World Record for climbing in the fastest time
ParisTour First10 May 2012
Port Louis, MauritiusMauritius Telecom Tower21 June 2012Legal climb, took less than 30 minutes.
Moscow, RussiaMail.ru office Tower29 August 2013Legal climb, took less than 30 minutes.
Auckland, New ZealandMetropolis Residences12 December 2013Legal climb, promotion for Samsung Galaxy Gear.
Yekaterinburg, RussiaVysotsky 24 September 2014Legal climb, promotion for Sinara Group
Makati, PhilippinesG.T. International Tower 29 January 2019Arrested.
Hong KongThe Cheung Kong Centre2019-
Frankfurt, GermanySkyper building2019Detained
Barcelona, SpainLa Torre Agba2020Detained and fined

Accidents

In a 2005 interview, Alain Robert said that he has fallen seven times in his life. The worst was his fall in September 1982.
On 18 January 1982, at 19, he fell when his anchor and rope gave way during training. He fractured his wrists, heels and nose and underwent three operations.
On 29 September 1982, at 20, he fell when his rope came undone while abseiling. He was in a coma for five days and fractured both forearms, his elbow, pelvis and nose. His elbow was also dislocated and a nerve was damaged, leaving him partially paralyzed. He also suffered cerebral edema and vertigo. He underwent six operations on his hands and elbow.
In 1993, he fell while showing students how to rely on their legs when climbing. He kept his hands behind his back on an easy route but lost his balance and fell headfirst, shattering both wrists. He went into another coma and spent two months in the hospital.
In 2004, he fell 2 metres when climbing a traffic light whilst posing for a photo in an interview. He landed on his elbow and needed forty stitches; just one month later he climbed the world's tallest skyscraper at the time, Taipei 101, as part of its official opening week.

Books and documentaries

Alain Robert's autobiography, With Bare Hands, was first published in English in 2008. It features his development into a famous urban climber from his days as a child and gives a deep insight into his philosophy and how he managed to overcome his disabilities.
The book was released for the Asian market in April by Blacksmith Books in Hong Kong with the subtitle "The true story of Alain Robert, the real-life Spiderman". In September it was released by Maverick House Publishers in the UK for the English language market across Europe. This edition has the subtitle "The Story of the Human Spider".
There is an award-winning 52-minute documentary about Robert titled The Wall Crawler by Director/Producer Julie Cohen, released in 1998.
The Channel 4 series Cutting Edge covered Robert in an episode entitled The Human Spider in April 2008.

Awards