Canton Tower , formerly known as
Guangzhou TV Astronomical and Sightseeing Tower and also known as
Guangzhou Tower , is a tall multi-purpose observation
tower in the
Haizhu District of
Guangzhou (historically known as Canton or Kwangchow),
Guangdong, China. The tower was
topped out in 2009 and it became operational on 29 September 2010 for the
2010 Asian Games. The tower briefly held the title of
tallest tower in the world, replacing the
CN Tower, before being surpassed by the
Tokyo Skytree. It was the tallest structure in China prior to the topping out of
Shanghai Tower on 3 August 2013. It is now the third tallest tower and the fifth-tallest
freestanding structure in the world.