Sultan Kösen (Tallest Man Living)

Sultan Kösen (Turkish: [suɫtɑn køsen]; born 10 December 1982 in Mardin, Turkey) is a Turkish farmer who holds the Guinness World Record for tallest living male at 251 centimetres (8 ft 3 in).

His growth resulted from a tumour affecting his pituitary gland. His stature is such that he must use crutches in order to walk.

Kösen lives with his parents, three brothers and sister, who are all of typical height. He was unable to complete his education because of his height, so instead works part time as a farmer. Despite his height, he claims to enjoy a normal lifestyle and enjoys playing computer games with his friends. He describes the advantages of being tall as seeing a great distance and being able to help his family with domestic tasks such as changing light bulbs and hanging curtains. He lists disadvantages as not being able to find clothes (inside leg measuring 44.5 inches (113 cm) and sleeve length measuring 38 inches (97 cm) or shoes that fit or finding it difficult to fit into an average-sized car.

Starting in 2010, Kösen received Gamma Knife treatment for his pituitary tumour at the University of Virginia Medical School and has also been provided with medication to control his excessive levels of growth hormone. Although the full effect of the treatment takes up to two years, as of 2011, his hormone levels were almost normal. It was confirmed in March 2012 that the treatment had been effective in halting Kösen's growth.

In October 2013, Kösen married Syrian-born Merve Dibo, who is ten years Kösen's junior. In his interview he said that his biggest problem with his wife is the communication problem, not that he is much taller than his wife. He said he speaks Kurdish and Turkish but his wife speaks only Arabic.

On 13 November 2014, as part of Guinness World Records Day, Kösen met, for the first time, the world's shortest living man, Chandra Bahadur Dangi, at an event in London.

Records
On 25 August 2009 Kösen's standing height was recorded at 246.4 cm (8 ft 1 in) in his home country by Guinness World Records, overtaking former world record holder Bao Xishun who stands 236 cm (7 ft 9 in) tall. Kösen also holds the current Guinness record for the largest hands at 27.5 cm, and the second largest feet at 36.5 cm (left foot) and 35.5 cm (right foot).
On 25 August 2010, according to the University of Virginia, a height of up to 254.3 cm (8 ft 4 in) had been confirmed by doctors and it was possible this was Kösen's actually height, artifically lowered by scoliosis and bad posture.

On 9 February 2011 Kösen was measured by Guinness World Records at 251 cm (8 ft 3 in).

World's Tallest Man Ever (Officially Recorded)

Wadlow reached 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m) in height and weighed 439 lb (199 kg) at his death at age 22. His great size and his continued growth in adulthood were due to hyperplasia of his pituitary gland, which results in an abnormally high level of human growth hormone. He showed no indication of an end to his growth even at the time of his death.

Robert Pershing Wadlow (February 22, 1918 – July 15, 1940) also known as theAlton Giant and the Giant of Illinois, was the tallest person in recorded historyfor whom there is irrefutable evidence. The Alton and Illinois monikers reflect the fact that he was born and raised in Alton, Illinois.

Wadlow was born to Addie Johnson and Harold Wadlow in Alton, Illinois, on February 22, 1918, and was the eldest of five children. He was taller than his father at age 8, and in elementary school they had to make a special desk for him due to his size. By the time he had graduated from Alton High School in 1936, he was 8 ft 4 in (2.54 m).[1] After graduating he enrolled in Shurtleff College with the intention of studying law.

Wadlow's size began to take its toll: he required leg braces to walk and had little feeling in his legs and feet. Despite these difficulties, he never used a wheelchair.

Wadlow became a celebrity after his 1936 U.S. tour with the Ringling Brothers Circus. In 1938, he did a promotional tour with the International Shoe Company (since 1966 called INTERCO). They provided him his shoes free of charge. Examples still exist in several locations throughout the US, including Snyder's Shoe Store of Ludington and Manistee, Michigan, and the Alton Museum of History and Art. He continued participating in tours and public appearances, though only in his normal street clothes. [5] He possessed great physical strength until the last year of his life, when his strength and his health in general began to deteriorate rapidly.[citation needed]