Jaw-Dropping Facts About World Records
World records come in many shapes and sizes. Some of them are the result of nature or genetics, while others are the result of immense training, technical skill, and a lot of discipline and motivation.
We love reading about world records, because we are always curious to discover the extreme limits of our abilities. Here are 42 facts about world records and the people, animals, and things that set and broke them that will surely make your jaw drop.
1. Origin of the Guinness World Records
If you ever wondered if there was a connection between the Guinness World Records and Guinness beer, then I’m happy to tell you that there is. The immensely popular annual book of world records was the brainchild of Sir Hugh Beaver, the managing director of Guinness Breweries. On a hunting trip, Beaver got into a debate with his friends over which game bird is the fastest—the golden plover or the red grouse.
Realizing that there was no quick reference guide to settle the question or the numerous other questions that arise in bars and at parties, Beaver thought a compendium of world records would be a very useful resource.
The first book was released in 1955 and became an instant success.
2. Imagine These on a Chalkboard
For decades, Shridhar Chillal was known for having the world’s longest fingernails. Chillal started growing the fingernails on his left hand as a schoolboy in India.
He accidentally broke his teacher’s long fingernail and was told that he would never understand the care and discipline needed to grow a long fingernail. It turns out Chillal did, because he went 66 years without cutting his own fingernails.
When they were last measured, the combined length of his fingernails measured in at 29 feet 10 inches. The extreme length of his nails has come at a price though as they have rendered his left hand disfigured and functionless.
He finally cut them off in 2018 at a ceremony in the Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum in New York’s Times Square where the cut nails are currently on display.
3. The Stilt Drops a Century
In a 1962 game featuring the Philadelphia Warriors and New York Knicks, Warriors center and basketball icon Wilt Chamberlain set the record for most points by an individual player in an NBA game by scoring a gobsmacking 100 points.
Chamberlain played the entire 48 minutes, shot 36 for 63 from the field, went 28 for 32 from the foul line, and also added 25 rebounds for good measure. The record still stands today.
The closest any other player has come to the Chamberlain’s 100-point mark was Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, who scored 81 points in a game against the Toronto Raptors in 2006.
4. Crushing World Records for Charity
Having one world record is a pretty impressive feat; having 69 world records under your belt is extraordinary. That’s exactly what Suresh Joachim has been doing for the last two decades. His world records feature a wide array of accomplishments.
For instance, his wedding to his wife Christa featured a record 79 bridesmaids, 47 groomsmen, and the world’s longest bouquet. He holds the world record for balancing on one foot, doing so for a mind-boggling 76 hours and 40 minutes.
Other world records include longest distance travelled on an escalator, most distance moonwalked in a 24-hour span, and the longest radio broadcast.
Even more impressive, Joachim has donated proceeds from many of these record-breaking stunts to charity.
