Alain Robert (France) is also known as "the Human Spider" – and for good reason.
While most climbers find their calling on the peak of a mountain, Alain found his path by dominating the cityscape, topping skyscrapers using no equipment except for chalk and rubber shoes.
In 2015, the urban climber broke the record for most buildings climbed, with the incredible amount of 121 and secured himself a spot in the annals of Guinness World Records.
The cornerstone that completed this record-breaking streak was the successful ascent of the 306 m (1,003 ft) tall Cayan Tower in Dubai.
The so-called "French Spider-Man" started climbing monuments and skyscrapers almost thirty years ago: in 1994, after several years of traditional climbing, he kicked off his adventures in Chicago, where he scaled through the 42 stories of the Citigroup Centre.
Followed by a cameraman to film his quest, Alain discovered that the silent giants that formed the skyline of the city concealed a whole new, thrilling universe – not rock and snow, but steel and glass.
"The city of Chicago had just opened a door to a whole new universe, a range of mountains of steel and glass, he writes in his autobiography, With Bare Hands.
Among others, he has climbed:
But it wasn’t always an easy journey.
"When I was young, I was afraid of everything," the record holder said.
There, Alain found a whole new universe.
But the Alain is not only the record holder for most buildings climbed.
The attempt was organized as part of the tenth annual Education Without Borders conference and he summited the 829.8 m (2,722 ft) tower - the tallest in the world - under the awed eyes of some of the conference's key speakers.
Alain began at 6.03 pm on Monday 28th and summited the 163rd and top floor at 12.17 am on Tuesday 29th March.
Beforehand, he sought permission from Emaar properties to ensure he was not arrested during the ascent (as had previously happened in other countries). They convinced the record-breaking athlete to wear safety equipment, although Alain used his famous climbing style: just his bare hands and rubber shoes.
However, another challenge was waiting for Alain: the weather risked getting in the way of the attempt, and mid-ascent he was forced to use a pulling mechanism due to extreme weather conditions.
Luckily, that didn’t interfere with the attempt nor put Alain’s life at risk.
The year 2012 saw Alain once again deceiving gravity by scaling a 5-star hotel in Doha, Qatar.
On this occasion, he broke the record for the fastest time to climb The Torch Doha unassisted (solo) with a total time of 1 hr 33 min 47 sec.
The urban climber didn’t wear a safety harnesses for the attempt, relying only on chalk and rubber shoes. That made the record-breaking ascent even more dangerous.
Every misstep could end in tragedy, but Alain knew what he was doing and could rely on mental fortitude, countless hours of preparation and years of experience.
While being filmed for an ITV documentary, the French athlete swarmed up the mesh structure of the building using his bare hands, chalk and rubber shoes to maximize the grip.
The ascent started at the main entrance of the building and finished 180 degrees from that position, at the highest point of the tower.
Although the spectacle of Alain Robert conquering huge buildings is indeed breathtaking, it’s always important to remember that Alain is a professional.
"Some people don’t need to be close to the limit of life but I do, I need to be close to my limit," he said during The Disruptive Entrepreneur podcast.
However, he’s a renowned climber with plenty of experience and a thrill-seeker aware of the many risks of these attempts.
He trains to reach such results, putting his life on the line.
Albeit visually stunning, Alain’s adrenaline-filled records are not to be taken lightly, and they absolutely require an enormous amount of mental and physical preparation.