A man once jailed for climbing The Shard has now scaled the world's tallest freestanding climbing wall - before base jumping off. <br /><br />George King, 24, and companion Gary Connery, 55, conquered the 37 metre structure without safety gear. <br /><br />The duo travelled to Groningen, in the Netherlands, where they scaled the wall - named Excalibur - at 5am on Tuesday, July 16.<br /><br />After completing the exhilarating climb to the top, they jumped off - immediately deploying their parachutes.<br /><br />But while the wall was high enough to get the adrenaline pumping, it was thought to be too low for a successful BASE jump.<br /><br />The pair took off as planned - with George hitting a fence and Gary landing in a tree. Neither were injured.<br /><br />The daring stunt markets six years since George captured attention by free soloing the same wall on August 2, 2018. <br /><br />Reflecting on his latest adventure, he said: "Back in 2018, free-soloing this wall was my first major project.<br /><br />"If someone had told me then that six years later I'd be climbing it again and BASE jumping off it, I wouldn't have believed them.<br /><br />"Not because I lacked the dream, but because 37 meters seemed too low for such a feat. Yes 37m is tall for a climbing wall. But very low for a BASE jump.<br /><br />"Yet, here I am. Life is full of surprises.”<br /><br />George, from Oxford, is most notorious for scaling The Shard in London, one of the UK's most iconic buildings, in 2019 aged just 19.<br /><br />He was jailed for six months and served his time at HMP Pentonville.<br /><br />Shortly after being released from custody he climbed the 23-storey Unex Tower in Stratford, east London, without ropes.<br /><br />Accomplice Gary was equally as experienced - becoming the first person to land a wingsuit without a parachute<br /><br />In 2012, he jumped into the Olympic Stadium dressed as the Queen during the London Olympic Ceremony.<br /><br />Reflecting on the recent stunt, Gary added: “I cannot deny that there was great fear and trepidation involved in this.<br /><br />"It was without doubt a funky climb, something I have never done before and a very low BASE jump with many obstacles, but with the support of such a great team member with commitment and belief in not only myself but our project, it is wonderful to know even at 55 years old I can still push these limits and overcome fears and show such great mental strength.”
