3 of the World’s Tallest Men Ever Recorded Lived in Our DayAnd Some Are Still Towering Over Us Today – The Epoch Times

The Tallest Man Living is one of Guinness World Records most iconic titles.

Tallness has long been a sign of greatness and success in history. The Chinese held it desirous for men to betall, wealthy, and handsometallness coming nominally first. Our times have seen several men of towering stature, whose height has garnered celebrity, steep challenges, and in some cases romance.

Here, well peruse three of the tallest men ever recorded who lived in recent times, or are still living, whove claimed several Guinness World Record titles.

The current title for the Tallest Man Living is held by Sultan Ksen, 39, from Turkey, who, at age 9, became the first man over 8 feet to be measured by Guinness in over 20 years. Guinness has confirmed only 10 reliable cases of men reaching 8 feet in history.

Born on Dec. 10, 1982, Ksen did not experience his growth spurt until age 10. The rest of his family, including his parents, were of average size.Due to his height, he didnt finish school and instead he began working as a farmer to support his family.

Ksen towered a breathtaking 8 feet, 1 inch (246.5 cm) tall when he was measured in February 2009 and claimed the title for the first time. Two years later, at age 26, he broke this record, measuring 8 feet, 2.8 inches (251 cm).

Ksens humongous height was caused by a condition called pituitary gigantism where there is an overproduction of growth hormone in the pituitary gland. This resulted in his hands growing to an incredible 11.22 inches (28.5 cm) from the wrist to the tip of the middle finger, and setting the record for the Largest Hands on a Living Person.

He cites some advantages of being so tall, such as being able to help his mom replace broken lightbulbs and hang curtains. He is a basketball fan and can slam dunk without his feet leaving the ground, though he was unable to play ball in school because he was too tall.

Some of the disadvantages of his height include finding clothes and shoes that fit his lanky limbs. Ksens left foot measures 1 foot, 2.4 inches (36.5 cm), while his right measures 1 foot, 2.0 inches (35.5 cm) in length. Its also terribly difficult for Ksen to fit in a car.

Thankfully, after gaining exposure through Guinness, the gentle giant received revolutionary gamma knife surgery from the University of Virginia on the tumor affecting his pituitary gland, which stopped him from getting any taller.

Ksen hoped his fame would lead to his eventually finding a wife, which it did in 2013 when he married Syrian-born Merve Dibo, who is 9 years his junior, whom hemet through a mutual friend. As fate would have it, the couple parted ways in 2021, reportedly because of a language barrier.

Prior to Ksen, the title holder of the Tallest Man Living was Bao Xi Shun, a goat herder from Chifeng, Inner Mongolia. Born in 1951, by his own account he remained normal in height until the age of 16. He then served in the Peoples Liberation Army for three years before returning to Inner Mongolia to live with his mother.

He claimed the title of Tallest Man Living in 2005, then measuring a knee-wobbling 7 feet, 9 inches (236 cm), towering 3 inches above former Chinese pro basketball player Yao Mings 7feet, 6inches.

Baos tallness resulted from anautoimmune condition called rheumatism, which can cause pain and inflammation in the joints and connective tissues of the body.

He is famous for reportedlyhelping save the lives of two dolphins inDecember 2006 by removing shards of plastic from their stomachs.Bao allegedly used his 3.47-foot- (1.06 meter-) long arms to reach into the dolphins stomachs to retrieve the sharp objects with his hands.

The herdsman, now 70, is typically shown in photographs donning traditional Mongolian dress at cultural events or his wedding.The towering Mongolian married Xia Shujuan, asaleswoman, on March 24, 2007, and they had a son together the following year.

Last but certainly not least, the late Illinoisan Robert Wadlow is still the titleholder of the Tallest Man Ever.

Wadlow was born an average-size baby on Feb. 22, 1918, weighing 8.7 pounds (3.85 kg). His two parents were also of average size, as were his four younger siblings.

Wadlow started to shoot up from there onward. At age 5, he measured a staggering 5 feet, 4 inches (1.63 meters), and was already wearing clothes intended for teenagers. By the age of 8, hed surpassed his 5 foot, 11 inches (180.3 cm) dad,Harold F. Wadlow, in height, and was even able to carry him up the stairs of their family home.

Wadlows height caused him a number of medical issues which only worsened as he grew older and taller.

He endeavored to participate in the same activities as his peers and became a Boy Scout at the age of 13. This required him to get a custom-made uniform, tent, and sleeping bag.

He garnered the title of the Tallest Teenager Ever at age 16, when he reached 8 feet, 0.5 inches (2.45 meters). He graduated from high school in 1936 and then enrolled in college to pursue a career in law.

Later that year, Wadlows soaring height led him to fame, and he embarked on a tour with the hugely popular Ringling Brothers Circus.

When asked in a radio interview if he was bothered by so many people staring at him, he answered, according to Guinness, No, I just overlook them.

Doctors examined Wadlow and determined that his exceptional size, likeKsens, resulted from pituitary gigantism causing excessive levels of human growth hormone. But unlike Ksen, Wadlow never received treatment to stop it.

The mild-mannered American was last measured on June 27, 1940, then stretching a staggering 8 feet, 11.1 inches (2.72 meters) talla record that hasnt been broken to this day.

Wadlow has claimed other records, including the Largest Feet Ever, his tootsies measuring a jaw-dropping 18.5 inches (47 cm) longenough to fill a US size 37AA. Back then, his shoes cost as much as $100, equal to about $1,700 in todays currency.Additionally, he boasted the Largest Hands Ever, with his measuring 12.7 inches (32.3 centimeters) from the wrist to the tip of the middle finger.

But Wadlow also had difficulty getting around. He wore leg braces and used a walking stick. It was his legs that eventually caused his premature death at age 22, on July 15, 1940. He died in a hotel in Manistee, Michigan, from a septic blister on his right ankle caused by his brace, which had been poorly fitted just a week earlier.

In 1986, this human being of unsurpassed stature was honored with his own life-sized statue, which was erected on College Avenue in Alton, opposite the Alton Museum of History and Art. Meanwhile, a number of life-size likenesses of the herculean American continue to stand in museums across the world.

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3 of the World's Tallest Men Ever Recorded Lived in Our DayAnd Some Are Still Towering Over Us Today - The Epoch Times