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Rumeysa Gelgi: »You can turn every disadvantage into an advantage«
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Guinness World Records / dpa
At 215.16 centimeters, Rumeysa Gelgi is officially the tallest living woman in the world.
The Guinness Book of Records awarded the 24-year-old Turkish woman the world record.
One reason for their record size is what is known as Weaver Syndrome, which leads to significant growth.
The young woman mostly uses a wheelchair, but can also walk with the help of a rollator.
Gelgi from the small northern Anatolian town of Safranbolu was listed in the Guinness Book as early as 2014 - at the time as the largest living teenager in the world.
Since then, she has been using the attention to advocate for other people with rare diseases.
“You can turn any disadvantage into an advantage, so you should accept yourself for who you are.
Be aware of your potential and do your best, «said the 24-year-old.
Greatest woman in history came from China
Gelgi is far from the historic Guinness record.
The tallest woman who ever lived was 246.3 centimeters high: Zeng Jinlian from China died in 1982.
The tallest living man in the world is also a Turkish citizen: Sultan Kosen measured 251 centimeters in 2018.
According to the Guinness Book, only four people were taller in history.
Robert Wadlow from the USA was the tallest person in medical history at 272 centimeters.
When he died, he weighed 199 kilograms and was only 22 years old.
The Guinness Book of Records was once commissioned by the Guinness Brewery.
In 1955 the first edition of the "Guinness World Records" appeared with 198 pages full of top marks - in a green cover, decorated with an Irish harp.
Since then, the Guinness Book has become a bestseller.
More than 140 million copies have been sold - in more than 20 languages.
In the meantime, the record book was ranked third among the best-selling books behind the Bible and the Koran.
The Germans have been able to follow the hunt for records in their language since 1963 (read more here).
bam / dpa