French athlete breaks Eiffel Tower rope-climbing recordbr br French athlete Anouk Garnier set a new world record by climbing 110 meters up the Eiffel Tower. She expressed disbelief at her achievement in an interview with AFP. The previous records were 90 meters for men, held by South African Thomas van Tonder, and 26 meters for women, held by Denmark's Ida Mathilde Steensgaard.