A Frenchman created a sense of awe among crowds in Paris on Saturday when he walked from the Eiffel Tower to the Chaillot National Theater on a rope suspended 230 feet above the ground.
Nathan Paulin, who was tied to a safety cord, stepped barefoot almost 2,200 feet in approximately 30 minutes as part of an acrobatic performance marking the 38th European Heritage Days and launching the Cultural Olympiad in the city, the New York Daily News reported.
The 27-year-old event paused to lie down on the rope and breathe in his beautiful surroundings.
Reuters shared a video of Paulin slowly moving out onto the rope that was attached to the famous landmark as the crowds below gathered on the sidewalks to watch:
However, the feat was not merely a stroll in the park for the young man.
“I had thought a lot about this walk and it was nice to be there. It wasn’t easy to walk 600 meters, to focus, with everything around, the pressure. It was not as easy as I thought,” he said:
VIDEO: 🇷 French #tightrope walker #NathanPaulin delicately makes his way across a 600-metre long slackline between the #EiffelTower and Theatre National de Chaillot in Paris – a feat he himself describes as "not as easy as I thought" pic.twitter.com/yShvOghwDa
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) September 19, 2021
“I had already done it, but it was beautiful anyway. I am happy to have made it and to have been able to share. That’s what matters, to be able to share with everyone,” he noted.
Paulin, who previously said he had to overcome his childhood fear of heights, explained he practiced for four years to accomplish the recent feat.
“It’s really beautiful starting from the Eiffel Tower,” he commented. “During the performance, I really didn’t feel it, I really didn’t have a fear of heights.”
Paulin eventually arrived safely at his destination, bowed, then raised his hand to wave at the crowd while they cheered for him:
It was reportedly the longest highline crossing performed in an urban environment.
According to his website, Paulin held approximately ten world records and the longest crossing was “a 1662m long highline 300m high in the Cirque de Navacelles on June 9, 2017.”
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