Watch: Two daredevils climb Rio de Janeiro's Christ the Redeemer

The famed Christ the Redeemer statue stands above Guanabara Bay in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Photo / Getty Images

The Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro is one of world's most famous landmarks and a fresh challenge for two Russian photographers, Vadim Makhorov, 26, and Vitaliy Raskalov, 22.

But it was something the two young men, whose escapades have led to their being dubbed the "skywalkers", took in their stride.

Other tourists take shots of some of the world's most famous attractions, the Russian daredevils prefer to climb them and grab images of the view from the very top.

In the dead of night they climbed up the stairs of the 125-feet high statue which dominates the skyline of the Brazilian city, before opening a trap door which comes out just below the figure's neck.

Perched on the shoulder of the statue they then took a series of spectacular images.
Even though the daredevil stunt took place in May, the footage has only just been released.

This was the latest escapade in stunt photography by the pair in recent years.

In March 2013 they were an internet sensation when they evaded guards and defied regulations to climb pyramids at Giza, Egypt.

One of the "skywalkers" on top of the statue. Photo / Youtube

Mr Makhorov has also climbed Cologne Cathedral and taken shots from the top of the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame in Paris as well as Barcelona's Sagrada Familia.

In one month they scaled 12 attractions in seven different countries from Spain to Sweden.

They have also climbed a crane being used for the construction of the Ping An Finance Center in Shenzhen, which will be china's tallest building.

Their antics have annoyed the authorities around the world, but they insist that they mean no harm and are not deliberately trespassing - even though they have to wait until the coast is clear.

For Mr Raskalov, the purpose of the exercise was simple.

"We are just chasing the dream and always looking to go to the next highest point to see the things no one else gets to see."