Daredevil Nik Wallenda completed a high-wire walk on a 2-inch (5-cm) steel cable over a section of the Grand Canyon on Sunday (June 24), greeted by wild cheers after his hair-raising stunt.

Wallenda, the self-described "King of the High Wire," took 22 minutes and 54 seconds to walk 1,400 feet (426m) across the crimson-hued canyon with just the distant ribbon of the Little Colorado River beneath him. The event was broadcast live around the world.

Wallenda made the crossing without tether or safety net.

Wallenda could be heard praying almost constantly during the walk, murmuring "Thank you, Jesus." He kissed the ground when he reached the other side.

"It took every bit of me to stay focussed that entire time," Wallenda said.

Wallenda said the walk was stressful, with gusts of wind that moved the cable. But he also said the view, from 1,500 feet (457m) above the snaking river, was "breathtaking."

A seventh-generation member of the "Flying Wallendas" family of acrobats, Wallenda also made history last year by becoming the only person to walk a high wire over the brink of Niagara Falls. He used the same cable on Sunday.

The 34-year-old first dreamed of the challenge during a visit to the Grand Canyon with his parents as a teenager.

Viewers watching live in 217 countries were able to share Wallenda's point of view from the cable during the crossing, through cameras rigged to his body. Wallenda held a 43-pound (20-kg) balancing pole.

Presented by Adam Justice