Alex Honnold Free Solos Taipei 101 Live on Netflix

The climber who free soloed Yosemite's El Capitan is taking his legendary skill to new heights above Taiwan's capital city.

Alex Honnold will ascend Taipei 101, a 1,667-foot skyscraper, without ropes or safety equipment this Saturday morning. Netflix will broadcast the historic climb live with a 10-second delay for U.S. viewers tuning in Friday evening.

The 101-floor building has captivated Honnold's imagination for over a decade. While French climber Alain Robert scaled it on Christmas 2004 during the building's grand opening, Honnold will be the first to attempt it rope-free.

"When you look at climbing objectives, you look for things that are singular," Honnold told The Associated Press. "Something like El Capitan where it's way bigger and way prouder than all the things around it."

After months of training and practicing moves on the actual building, Honnold feels confident. The middle section's 64 floors present the biggest challenge, featuring eight segments of steep, overhanging climbs with balconies for rest between each.

Event producer Plimsoll Productions has assembled an extensive safety team. Four high-angle camera operators on ropes will stay close to Honnold throughout, ready to assist if problems arise. Professional weather forecasters are monitoring conditions, and multiple exit points exist if Honnold needs to bail.

The production team consulted risk management experts immediately after discussing the climb. They've positioned cameramen inside the building and established direct communication with Honnold throughout the event. If conditions turn bad, the climb won't happen.

The Ripple Effect

For Taiwan's climbing community, this moment represents something bigger than one person's achievement. Local climber Chin Tzu-hsiang says he's grown up staring at Taipei 101, wondering if anyone could climb it.

"For Alex Honnold to finish the climb, it's like he's helping us fulfill our dream," Chin said. Even his students who've only climbed for a year or two are excited to watch.

Climbing culture has always embraced calculated risk as part of its meditative art form. "From the public's perspective, this is thrill-seeking," says author Jeff Smoot. "From the climber's perspective, it's a meditative art form."

The broadcast will cut immediately if anything goes wrong, ensuring viewers witness only the triumph of human potential at its finest.