Follow the latest from Taiwan as the American climber tries to make history.
Live updates: Alex Honnold to Free Solo Taipei 101 on Netflix originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Welcome to our coverage of Alex Honnold’s Free Solo climb of Taipei 101. He will be scaling the building without ropes or safety gear.
Honnold is expected to begin his climb at 8 p.m. ET live on Netflix. The event was originally scheduled to take place yesterday, but was postponed to Saturday due to bad weather.
We’ll bring you the latest on his progress in real time Please stay tuned for updates.
8:00 p.m. ET
"I’ve never free soloed a skyscraper. And I think it’s fair to say it’s been a lifelong dream of mine.”@AlexHonnold is about to fulfill that lifelong dream when he climbs Taipei 101 without a rope 😯#SkyscraperLIVE TONIGHT at 8 PM ET | 5 PM PT.pic.twitter.com/KBfXFunZ4U
— Netflix Sports (@netflixsports) January 25, 2026
7:58 p.m. ET
UPDATE: Tonight's #SkyscraperLIVE event is CONFIRMED for 8 PM ET | 5 PM PT.
— Netflix (@netflix) January 25, 2026
Tune in to watch Alex Honnold free solo Taipei 101 LIVE on Netflix. pic.twitter.com/cjED3QpTR1
Alex Honnold has not yet completed a free-solo climb of Taipei 101 — and no one ever has
Honnold, the famously rope-free climber and star of the Oscar-winning documentary Free Solo, is attempting a first-of-its-kind ascent of the 1,667-foot, 101-story skyscraper without ropes, harnesses or a safety net. The live Netflix event, titled Skyscraper Live, was delayed one day from its original Jan. 23 start because of rain, with organizers citing safety concerns related to slick conditions.
If completed, the climb would mark the first true free solo of Taipei 101. French urban climber Alain Robert, known as the “French Spider-Man,” scaled the building in 2004, but did so using a rope at the request of Taiwanese authorities.
The route Honnold plans to climb is broken into three sections, with the middle portion posing the greatest challenge. The building’s distinctive bamboo-inspired design creates repeated overhangs — some estimated at 10 to 15 degrees — over roughly 64 floors. “Buildings are steeper than most rock faces,” Honnold told Netflix’s Tudum. “Rock that looks vertical usually isn’t — buildings are.”
Honnold is no stranger to redefining what is possible. In 2017, he became the first person to free-solo El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, climbing nearly 3,000 feet of sheer granite without protection. He has also completed the Yosemite Triple Crown in a single push and free-soloed Moonlight Buttress in Zion.
Streaming such a high-risk ascent live is unprecedented. Whether Honnold tops out or turns back, history will be made and viewers everywhere will be watching.
More Alex Honnold news:
- Everything you need to know about Netflix's delayed broadcast
- Alex Honnold hometown and more to know about where climbing legend lives
- Alex Honnold will earn 'an embarrassing amount' for conquering Taipei 101
- How Alex Honnold's Taipei 101 climb compares to El Capitan
- How many people have free soloed El Capitan?
Category: General Sports