Fitness Testing
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World's Tallest People
The current world's tallest man (according to the Guinness World Records, as of Sept 2009), is Sultan Kosen who measures 246.5cm (eight feet one inch). He is from Turkey and is 26 years old. He took over the title from China's Bao Xishun, who is 'only' 2.36m. There may be a taller man - Ukrainian Leonid Stadnyk claims to be 10.5cm taller than Mr Kosen, though fails to qualify for the record because he refused to be measured by Guinness World Records officials.
Sultan Kosen also has the record for the world's largest hands and feet, measuring 27.5cm and 36.5cm respectively.
As with many of the world's tallest men, he has had a dysfunction with his body's release of growth hormone. Kosen's rate of growth surged from the age of ten because of a tumor which caused too much growth hormone to be released from his pituitary gland. The tumor was successfully removed by surgery and he finally stopped growing in 2008.
Tall Sports People
The tallest player in the history of professional basketball is Sun Ming Ming, from Bayan in China. He stands 213 cm (7 ft 9in) tall. He plays for the Maryland Nighthawks in the NBA. Another very tall player, Manute Bol, stood at 7 feet 7 inches (231 cm) tall, played for the Washington Bullets. See more about body size in basketball.
Related Pages
- procedure for Height
- more Fitness Testing Records and other Sporting Records
- sportig records from the Guinness World Records
- More Records? I scan the internet for the latest athlete results. If you know of something I have missed, I would love to hear from you.
