China Lifts Ban on French Spidey

Only a few months after China booted out French daredevil Alain Robert for illegally climbing Shangai's tallest building, the communist superpower has invited him back. Robert, known as the French Spider-Man for scaling tall structures without safety gear, was expelled for five years and spent some quality time in jail, but will return to ascend a Chinese mountain as part of a scheme to bring in tourists.

Robert was invited to Zhangjiajie National Forest Park by local officials, who initially didn't know that he had been expelled. This time, Robert says, he'll keep his mitts off other structures in the interest of staying out of trouble. The climber has also scaled the Taipei 101, the Empire State Building, and the Eiffel Tower, the AP reports. (More Alain Robert stories.)