Video: 24-year-old declared world's tallest woman alive

Supplied photo

London - The tallest living man is also from the same country.

By Staff Reporter

Published: Wed 13 Oct 2021, 3:39 PM

Last updated: Wed 13 Oct 2021, 3:54 PM

Turkey's Rumeysa Gelgi, who stands at 215.16cm (7ft 0.7in), was declared the tallest woman alive on Wednesday.

Guinness World Records (GWR) awarded the title to Gelgi, who got her first recognition in 2014 when she was named the tallest teenager at 17.

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Her tall stature was brought about by Weaver syndrome, an extremely rare condition which causes accelerated growth, among other abnormalities including skeletal maturation.

Get to know Gelgi here:

Since achieving the GWR title back in 2014, Gelgi felt it was important to use her platform for an advocacy and educate others about rare medical conditions, such as her own.

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Fast forward to 2021, aged 24, Gelgi has been re-measured and confirmed as the GWR title holder for the tallest woman alive.

She said she felt "proud" and "unique". Gelgi is mostly wheelchair-bound but can walk using a walker.

Though the people she sees on the street find her height intriguing, most of them are kind and supportive, she said.

In her free time, Gelgi likes to go out for nice meals with her family and finds swimming relaxing. Her family is very happy and proud of her for having the GWR title.

Sharing a piece of advice for anyone who is tall or struggling with feeling different, she said: "Every disadvantage can be turned into an advantage for yourself, so accept yourself for who you are. Be aware of your potential and do your best”.

Craig Glenday, editor-in-chief at GWR, said: “It's an honour to welcome Gelgi back into the record books. Her indomitable spirit and pride at standing out from the crowd is an inspiration. The category of tallest living woman is not one that changes hands very often, so I'm excited to share this news with the world.

"And it's all the more fascinating she is from Turkey, which means that both our tallest living male and female record-holders are from the same country — a rare occurrence in our 67-year history."

The last time the two holders shared the same nationality was in 2009, when China's Bao Xi Shun (236.1cm; 7 ft 8.95in) and Yao Defen (233.3cm; 7ft 7in) held the records, respectively.

The previous title-holder was Yao Defen (China) who recorded an average height of 233.3cm (7 ft 7 in) when last documented back in 2010.

The title for the tallest living man currently belongs to Sultan Kosen (Turkey), who measured 251 cm (8 ft 2.8 in) on February 8, 2011.

The tallest woman ever to have lived was Zeng Jinlian (China) who was measured 246.3 cm (8 ft 1 in) when she died on February 13, 1982.