Alex Honnold's daring Taipei 101 skyscraper climb inspires risky copycat attempts
Online reactions to the copycat attempts were mixed, with some users making jokes while others highlighted the risks and warned of potentially fatal consequences.
Some viewers attempted to copy Alex Honnold's rope-free Taipei 101 climb livestreamed by Netflix, with most failing to get past the first level. (Photos: Instagram/wilsonkhorphotography and yanghan9014; Threads/wsac_qiaooo)
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Several copycats have been spotted trying to climb Taipei 101 in Taiwan after American climber Alex Honnold completed a high-profile, rope-free ascent of the skyscraper last week.
Honnold, 40, scaled the 508m, 101-storey building on Sunday (Jan 25) without ropes or safety equipment, reaching the spire after a 91-minute climb that was livestreamed by Netflix and watched by thousands on the ground.
The ascent was carried out with the approval of Taipei 101's management and the support of the city government.
Taipei 101 was the world's tallest building from 2004 to 2010, and remains one of Taiwan's iconic landmarks.
Despite on-screen warnings from Netflix that the feat should not be attempted by non-professionals, images and videos later surfaced online showing individuals attempting to climb parts of the building's exterior.
Most appeared to struggle to gain a foothold and did not make it beyond the first level.
Honnold, widely regarded as one of the world's top climbers, is known for his meticulous preparation, having completed multiple trial climbs months ahead of the livestreamed event.
He is also famed for becoming the first person to free-solo Yosemite's El Capitan in 2017, a feat documented in the Oscar-winning film Free Solo, and to date remains the only person to have done so.
To "free solo" is to climb without ropes, harnesses and other safety equipment.
Online reactions to the copycat attempts were mixed, with some users reacting humorously while others highlighted the risks involved and warned of potentially dangerous consequences.
One wrote: "Madness and entirely irresponsible of Netflix. I imagine we will see loads of less-skilled copycat climbers falling to their deaths from skyscrapers over the next few months."
The live broadcast has drawn criticism from experts, including philosopher Claudia Paganini, who told German news outlet DW that it risks normalising dangerous behaviour and encouraging copycats.
She added that responsibility now rests more with the media than the athlete, as the risk of the stunt had been "deliberately used to increase attention and reach", reported DW.
