Attempts that fell short of a Guinness Book record

Not all attempts to enter the Guinness Book are successful. Khaleej Times speaks to the Guinness Book representatives for a lowdown of the records.

DEEPEST SCUBA DIVER . . . Ahmed Gabr holds his world record certificate for the deepest scuba dive (male) in the Red Sea of Dahab, Egypt.

Last year, in the UAE alone, 51 records were set across categories of human endurance, engineering, and among others, art. This year, in January alone, 52 record attempt applications were received, but only five got made. On being asked about the impression among some people that a lot of silly records are being made, Talal Omar, country manager of the Middle East and North Africa region (Mena) region at Guinness World Records, said: “People need to keep in mind that not every record that is attempted gets made.”

Latest 5 records in Mena in 2015  >      The longest hand-made gold chain, which was for the Dubai Shopping Festival, >      3 records were for an individual Eva Clark for the ‘Most burpees’ in 1 hour; the ‘Most burpees’ in 24 hours (Female), and most knuckle push-ups in 1 minute. >      One record was set in Kuwait for the most clothes collected in 24 hours by Gulf University for Science & Technology.   GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS set in the UAE in recent years Food > Largest packaged food mosaic: Measured 24.7 m (81 ft 0.44 in) in length, 38.6 m (126ft 7.68 in) in width, and was achieved by Sharp MEA FZE, in Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, on October 3, 2013. > Largest chocolate Truffle mosaic: The largest chocolate truffle mosaic has an area of 404.91 square metres (4,358.4 square feet) and was created by Za’abeel Palace Hospitality and Sara Al Shinqaiti (both UAE) at Dubai World Trade Centre in Dubai on November 16, 2013. Art and Culture > Largest greeting card mosaic: The largest greetings card mosaic has an area of 117.71 square metres (1,267.01 square feet) and was created by Ajman Tourism Development Department (UAE), in Ajman on December 1, 2013. > Largest underwater photo exhibition: The largest underwater photography exhibition consisted of 100 photographs and was achieved by Hamdan Bin Mohammed Heritage Centred (UAE) in Dubai on February 1, 2014. HUMAN ENDURANCE > Most knuckle push ups in 24 hours (female): The most knuckle push-ups in 24 hours by a female is 9,241 and was achieved by Eva Clarke (Australia) at Wahda Mall in Abu Dhabi on February 1, 2014. > Deepest scuba dive: The deepest scuba dive (male) was achieved by UAE resident Ahmed Gabr who dived to a depth of 332.35 m (1,090 ft 4.5 in) in the Red Sea of Dahab, Egypt, on September 18, 2014. Architecture and Engineering  > Largest vertical maze: The largest vertical maze is situated on the front facade of Al Rostamani Maze Tower and has a surface area of 3,947.22 square metres (42,487.35 square feet). The building was completed in January 2012 in Dubai. The building also forms the world’s first known vertical Maze. The intricate lines of the balconies on the front and rear facades form real puzzles, which were painstakingly created by the acclaimed maze designer Adrian Fisher. > Highest observation deck: The highest observation deck is the At the Top, Burj Khalifa Sky, located at 555.7 m (1,823 ft 1.9 in) of the Burj Khalifa. The observation deck was inaugurated in Dubai on October 14, 2014. > Largest LED-illuminated facade: Burj Khalifa has the largest LED-illuminated facade with a continuous area of 32,467 square metres (349,470.48 square feet) and displays full-colour animated video images. At night, the whole front facade of the building glows with the light of 365,337 pixels. The installation was completed on December 31, 2014. > Heaviest item moved by self-propelled modular trailers: The heaviest load moved by self-propelled modular trailers (SPMTs) is an offshore platform weighing 13,191.98 metric tonnes (29,083,337.53 lb), which was achieved by Lamprell PLC (UAE) at their facility in Jebel Ali, Dubai in April 2014.

Thirty years ago, a German chef at a five-star restaurant in Dubai was once part of the team that attempted to make the world’s largest, broadest, longest cake. It was one of the earlier attempts of the region to enter the Guinness Book of Records.

The chef in question, told Khaleej Times  that sugar for this cake was flown in from Bahrain as the UAE had actually run short of sugar. The cake had marzipan flowers. People had come out of their houses to see this cake on the road. They were carrying black garbage bags to fill with chunks of cake. All was well till someone floated a rumour that a key to a Mercedes was buried in the cake. That was it. The chef told Khaleej Times that people actually “dived into the cake” and waded through the sponge and marzipan to scoop out the key that, of course, didn’t exist. The chef said he didn’t remember whether they finally made it to the record books or not. He suspects they did, but added that someone might have come after and broken the record.

“Every record that is set has to be measurable, verifiable and breakable. So first man on the moon is not a record, but a fact”, says Omar.

Dubai is no stranger to superlatives. The world’s tallest tower has at least nine related records that include highest observation deck, tallest elevator, highest occupied floor, and largest LED-illuminated façade.

Leila Issa, marketing manager of the Mena region at Guinness World Records, spoke to Khaleej Times to dispel the notion that all sorts of random records are being set. Is it that easy to get a certification?

“No. We have very strict guidelines and adjudicators. We need to protect the brand. We get 1,000 applications per week globally. And on a yearly basis 8-10% of record attempts in the Middle East do not succeed.” She spoke of how a certain record at a recent marathon didn’t get made.

Having said that 52 per cent of Mena records are made in the UAE.

According to Omar, that it’s a young country may be one of the factors that contribute to so many records from the UAE. It’s a young country with an eager, enthusiastic population, he said.

On being asked about examples of failed attempts, Issa said they would not like to mention that as a courtesy to the clients. “We will not be able to mention any details on those records. Many of them would like to try the attempt again.”

Out of the 1,000 applications/week that Guinness World Records receives on a global level, Issa said: “Only 5% actually become a record. That is due to a number of reasons; either the applicant doesn’t continue the application process or evidence might be insufficient or some records don’t meet our criteria of being measurable, breakable and verifiable.”

The environment angle

Dubai among all sorts of records claims the world’s longest gold chain, world’s largest chocolate truffle mosaic, longest graffiti scroll; the number of records set in the region can take up entire pages.

Food, for instance, is a whole new different category, and the organisers have a clause that prohibits any food from going waste. It’s in the Agreement Regarding Record Attempt (ARRA). “We always encourage recycling, green activities and completely support the environment,” says Issa.

So when chefs attempt to create the largest number of desserts in one place (January 2013 at the Meydan Hotel), it’s a given that the desert — luqaimats, in this case — need to be consumed by participants/visitors there and then or distributed to the under-privileged. (Luqaimats are dumplings fried in sugar, dipped in date syrup, and sprinkled with sesame seeds or desiccated coconut or chocolate).

No monetary gains

None of the record setters receive any monetary incentive from the Guinness World Records. “No, we never pay any record applicants or holders for their record attempt, to do so would compromise our bias. As the official authority on record-breaking achievements, we acknowledge and recognise them for their achievements as the world’s best”.

And on a lighter note, when asked if there are any intriguing animal-related records, Issa said: “We have not yet had any records for this category in the region but it is something we are exploring. Just as humans, animals are capable of doing many amazing things and we want to shed some light on this category in the Middle East,” she said..

nivriti@khaleejtimes.com

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