Alain Robert (French pronunciation: [alɛ̃ ʁɔbɛʁ]; born Alain Philippe Robert; 7 August 1962) is a French rock climber and urban climber. Nicknamed "the French Spider-Man" or "the Human Spider", Robert carries out free solo climbs of skyscrapers using no climbing equipment except for a small bag of chalk and a pair of climbing shoes.
Authorities do not typically grant him permission to climb many of the buildings he has ascended, but Robert has managed to evade security and access these structures surreptitiously. As a result, he has been arrested numerous times in various countries by law enforcement officials who were waiting for him at the end of his climb. However, he has also completed some climbs with permission and sponsorship.
Contents
Strategy
Robert's rock-climbing physical training and technique allow him to climb using the small protrusions of building walls and windows (such as window ledges and frames). 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, most of them performed free solo.
1990s
In July 1994, he climbed the Citibank Citicorp Center.
On 20 March 1997, he climbed the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia but was arrested at the 60th floor, 28 floors below the top.
On 16 April 1998, he climbed the 23-metre (75 ft) high Luxor Obelisk in Paris.
In June 1999, Robert climbed the 170-metre (558 ft) Marriott Hotel in Warsaw.
On 20 August 1999, he climbed the Sears Tower, the second man to do so after Dan Goodwin. However, Robert performed the climb with no equipment other than a chalk bag and shoes, while Goodwin used suction cups and sky hooks, wearing a homemade Spider-Man suit.
2000s
On 21 February 2003, he legally climbed the 200-metre (656 ft) 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.
On 12 May 2003, he was paid approximately $18,000 to climb the 95-metre (312 ft) 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 187-metre (614 ft) headquarters of the French oil company Total while wearing a Spider-Man costume.
On 25 December 2004, Robert scaled Taipei 101 a few days before its grand opening as the tallest building in the world. The 508-metre (1,667 ft) 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 283 metres (928 ft) 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, 148 metres (486 ft), in Vilnius. Wearing a black suit and using a safety rope, which he detached several times, he reached the observation deck of the building, 114 metres (374 ft), 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.
On 7 December 2006, he finished the year climbing the Santa Fe World Plaza in Mexico City.
On 23 February 2007, he legally climbed the headquarters building of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) on the coast of Abu Dhabi.
2010s
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 (1 hour, 33 minutes and 47 seconds).
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 2016, he climbed the Torre Agbar, a 38-storey skyscraper in Barcelona, Spain.
2020s
On 1 October 2020, he climbed the 166m tall Silberturm (Silver Tower) in Frankfurt.
On 23 November 2021, he once again climbed the Skyper building in Frankfurt, before being arrested by German authorities.
On 17 September 2022, he once again climbed the Tour Total in Paris, to celebrate his 60th birthday. He wanted to prove that "being 60 is nothing. You can still do sport, be active, do fabulous things."
On 5 March 2024, he again climbed the G.T. International Tower in Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines, to show support for the country in the territorial disputes in the South China Sea. He was then again arrested by the Makati City Police upon finishing his descent. Despite claiming he was mistreated by the Police, the authorities denied being harsh on him, and clarified that they're not allowed to give him any special treatment even if he's familiar. However, Philippine netizens' comments on social media were overwhelmingly positive and were actually in awe of his stunt, with the majority even being thankful for performing his act with a geopolitically relevant motivation.
Notable climbs
The table below contains the notable structures climbed by Alain Robert.
Accidents
In a 2005 interview, 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 15 metres (49 ft) 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 15 metres (49 ft) 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 8 metres (26 ft) 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 (6,5 ft) 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
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" (ISBN 9789889979928). 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" (ISBN 9781905379552).
There is a 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
Faust Challenger of the Year (2011), Japan