A Hero Who Climbed Up A Building To Save A Child Has Been Made A French Citizen

A man who somehow scaled the outside of a building in less than 30 seconds to save a dangling child has been awarded with French citizenship and a job in the fire brigade.

Mamoudou Gassama, an immigrant from Mali who arrived in Paris a few months ago, met with France's President Macron this morning at the Elysee Palace.

He's been nicknamed Spider-Man for his heroic efforts last Saturday evening, which saw him climb four floors with his bare hands at an impressive speed.

Twenty-two-year-old Mamoudou showed off some serious upper body strength in his race to reach the kid, who was hanging from a balcony just out of reach of the neighbours.

Macron awarded the national hero with a medal for bravery, and he will soon be made an official French citizen.

The president shared photos of their meeting at the palace on his Facebook page, saying that the "Paris fire brigade would be keen to welcome him to their ranks."

Fire crews arrived at the scene at the weekend to find that their work had already been done for them.

Most people would suit up to meet the president, but today Gassama wore jeans and a flamingo-printed shirt - what an absolute LAD.

The Malian Spider-Man told the president that he didn't even think about it before he started his bloody terrifying rescue mission.

A crowd of onlookers shouting up at the balcony caught his attention, and he barely hesitated before hauling himself up the side of the building.

It was only when he was back inside that the adrenaline got the better of him. He told reporters: "'I felt afraid when I saved the child... (when) we went into the living room, I started to shake, I could hardly stand up, I had to sit down."

A video of the incident, which has been viewed millions of times, shows him climbing from balcony to balcony before grabbing the four-year-old's arm and pulling him back to safety.

Apparently, the boy was at home alone when it all kicked off in the 18^th arrondissement in Paris at the weekend - his dad has been questioned by the police.

By some miracle, the child tore a fingernail but was otherwise completely fine (though, probably a bit shaken up), and his rescuer walked away with just a few cuts.

Top LAD, Mamoudou.

Words: Daisy Jackson