He wanted to show the famous rocky island of Mont-Saint-Michel “a different way”: The French high-wire artist Nathan Paulin balanced over a 2.2-kilometer-long slackline at a height of 100 meters on the island in Normandy in northern France. According to his team, he set a new world record on Tuesday. “It was a very intense experience,” said Paulin after his arrival.

The two-centimetre-wide band was stretched between a crane on the mainland and Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey. Paulin, wearing jeans and a blue and white striped T-shirt, was barefoot and wearing a seat belt.

After heavy gusts of wind shortly before the start, the weather remained calm during his demonstration. “It’s a wonderful place that has always fascinated me,” said the 28-year-old, who wanted to run the route in the other direction again on Wednesday, with the abbey behind him.