La Défense (France) (AFP)

Alain Robert, the French "Spiderman", climbed the Total tower in La Défense, a business district near Paris, with his bare hands on Monday morning, in support of the strike against pension reform, an AFP journalist noted. .

"People already spend 40 years going to charcoal, often for a job they do not like. We want to continue to live decently," explained Alain Robert before starting the escalation.

The 57-year-old climber, a specialist in skyscraper climbing, began to climb the 187 meters of Total Tower at around 10:30 a.m. (9:30 GMT) before reaching the summit 52 minutes later.

"It was very cold, I no longer felt the tip of my fingers, it was delicate. And then I no longer have the same potato as it did 20 years ago!", He joked to after his ascent, before being taken away by the police.

Through this exploit, Alain Robert wanted to show his support for the strike against the pension reform, a "fight" which he considers "legitimate".

"At 57, I'm technically not far from retirement. And my only way to earn money is to climb. Will I have to keep climbing alone until 64? Or 67? "He asked ironically.

As he is used to, this specialist in full solo climbed with his bare hands, without insurance, under the amazed eyes of some passersby.

In August, he climbed the 68 floors of the Cheung Kong Center in Hong Kong to display a banner for peace between China and the former British colony, in the midst of a political crisis.

In 2015, his escalation from the Engie tower, already in La Défense, aimed to campaign for "a more transparent banking system".

© 2020 AFP