Photographs: REUTERS
A French daredevil has scaled Cuba's famous 27-stoeried Habana Libre Hotel on Monday without ropes or a safety net.
Alain Robert succeeded in climbing to the top of the hotel in about half an hour, as hundreds of onlookers gasped and cheered from the streets.
The 50-year-old said his main concern was not the height of the hotel, but its condition, London's Telegraph newspaper reported.
Like many city landmarks, the hotel is in disrepair after more than half a century of Communist rule on the island.
The hotel is one of the Cuban capital's most iconic buildings, taken over after the 1959 Cuban Revolution and redubbed the 'Habana Libre', or 'Free Havana,' the report said.
Robert, known as 'Spiderman', has scaled much taller structures in his career, including the former Sears Tower in Chicago, New York''s Empire State Building and San Francisco''s Golden Gate Bridge.
Two years ago he took six hours to climb the world's tallest building, the 2,717 foot Burj Khalifa in Dubai, although for that ascent he used some safety equipment.
Rediff.com tracks the adventures of the Frenchman since his early stints in 1997.
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Robert scales the tallest tower in Doha, the Torch Doha, with a height of 300 metres, on April 12, 2012.
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Robert reacts as he scales to the top of the 165-metre (541-feet) high Singapore Flyer observation wheel on November 5, 2010.
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Robert climbs the 165-metre-high (541 feet) 46-story Italia building in downtown Sao Paulo February 27, 2008. Robert successfully scaled Sao Paulo's landmark building on his second attempt in a week, after being arrested by police on his first attempt while he began to climb.
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Robert attaches a banner to the154 metre (505 feet) high 'Skyper' building before climbing the skyscraper to raise awareness about global warming, in Frankfurt July 7, 2008.
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Robert climbs a hotel building in downtown Madrid, February 19, 2008. Robert climbed a wall measuring 55 metres without using security measures.
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An airplane flies past as Robert as he climbs outside the 154 metre (505 feet) high 'Skyper' building in Frankfurt, to raise awareness about global warming, July 7, 2008.
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Robert climbs the 165-metre-high (541 feet) 46-story Italia building in downtown Sao Paulo February 27, 2008.
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Rescuers stand at the foot of a wall of Tianmen mountain as Robert (in red) climbs it in Zhangjiajie, central China's Hunan province November 18, 2007. China has invited Robert back to scale the mountain, despite banning him from the country for five years after he climbed a Shanghai skyscraper without permission.
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Robert celebrates after climbing a 243-metre (797 feet) tall building in Moscow September 4, 2007.
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Robert climbs up the April 25 bridge over the Tagus river in Lisbon August 6, 2007. Robert completed the 190-metre climb during rush hour on Monday before giving himself up to local police.
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Robert climbs a 63-metre tall building in Kiev June 25, 2007. Robert climbed the 16-storey building as part of a promotional campaign for a local telecommunications company.
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Robert waves as he climbs down the Jin Mao Tower in Shanghai May 31, 2007. Clad in a Spider-Man costume, French climber Robert on Thursday scaled the 88-storey Jin Mao Tower, China's tallest building, and was met by cheering crowds and Shanghai law enforcement officers on the ground.
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Robert sits on a ledge as police wait for him on the 60th floor of the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur March 20, 2007. Robert was arrested as he tried to scurry up the world's tallest twin towers in the Malaysian capital.
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Robert scales the National Bank of Abu Dhabi's new 202-metre headquarters February 21, 2003.
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Robert climbs the cables surrounding Centerpoint Tower, Sydney's tallest building, February 27. Robert was caught by police before he was able to reach the top.
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