Couples who break records together stay together: From tallest pair to oldest to marry
In 2023, Giorgi Kvantchiani broke the record for most rotating kneeling jumps in 30 seconds on a televised talent show. But it was the moment he stopped jumping that meant the most to him. Giorgi continued kneeling, on one knee this time, and proposed to his longtime girlfriend Maya.
For Giorgi, attempting to set the record was a means for him to express his commitment to Maya in the perfect way.
“I had been thinking about the proposal for months,” Giorgi said. “But I wanted to make an original proposal in a prestigious place, and I had the opportunity to do so soon.”
Giorgi and Maya are one of many couples who have been brought together, or strengthened their existing bond, through Guinness World Records titles.
This Valentine’s Day, here is a list of five couples who have set and broken some unique records:
The hungry couple
Miki Sudo and Nicholas Wehry share a passion for food. Together, their love for eating has resulted in them together setting over five Guinness World Records titles. Hot dogs seem to be a personal favourite for the two.
While Miki holds the title for most hot dogs eaten in one minute, Nicholas holds the one for most hot dogs eaten in three minutes. Both confess that they often compete with each other, all in good spirit.
If a comparison were to be made though, Miki holds more titles than Nicholas, including the fastest time to eat a burrito, most hot dogs eaten at a Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest (female), most wins of the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest (female) and most jelly (jello) eaten with a fork in 30 seconds.
Despite not having as many titles, Nicholas is a proud husband who celebrates Miki’s accomplishments.
"If there's a Mount Rushmore to what we do, she'd be one of the four heads on there," Nicholas told ESPN.
The couple’s love story began when they met each other before participating in the 2018 Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. Now, they are bringing up their son Max, while eyeing future titles they can claim.
A “long” lasting marriage
Sun Mingming and his wife Xu Yan have a combined height of almost 14 feet. That is as tall as an adult giraffe! The two are the tallest married couple living and tied the knot in Beijing, China, over a decade ago.
Sun is 236.17 cm (7 ft 8.98 in) tall and Xu is 187.3 (6 ft 1.74 in) tall. However, their height is not their only defining characteristic. Sun and Xu pursed careers in professional basketball and handball respectively. Not to mention, maintaining a happy decade old marriage is also an achievement in itself.
Sun Mingming and his wife Xu Yan, the tallest married couple living, pictured together.
Crazy in Love
From having the most Grammy nominations for a female artist to being the first Black female artist to top Billboard's Hot Country Songs Chart, Beyoncé is a true music icon. Most recently, Beyoncé broke her own record of most Grammy awards won by an individual, sweeping up three more awards on Feb. 2. In total, she now holds 35 Grammy awards.
Along with her husband Jay-Z, she is an even greater force to be reckoned with. In addition to being “Crazy in Love”, the two have consecutively broken their own records of most Grammy awards won by a married couple over the past five years.
As of now, they have won 56 Grammy awards and have accumulated 176 nominations. They are also the highest earning couple in Hollywood.
It’s never too late
A college campus is arguably one of the most common places where people meet their better halves. While Marjorie Fiterman and Bernie Littman attended the University of Pennsylvania at the same time, it was 75 years later when they actually met and got married
At 102 and 100 years old respectively, Marjorie and Bernie became the oldest couple to marry (aggregate age). The two crossed paths when they moved in at a senior living facility in Philadelphia, USA, after their partners passed away.
While a decision to remarry came as a surprise to their families, an adorable ceremony followed soon after. Sarah Sicherman, Bernie’s granddaughter, said the two complement each other perfectly.
“They both love each other’s humour and intellect,” Sarah said. “They keep each other young.”
Marjorie Fiterman and Bernie Littman, the oldest couple to marry, pictured together
Squashing all records
In 2019, Raneem El Welily and Tarek Momen became the first married couple to become Squash World Champions. Raneem first won the women’s title in Manchester, UK, in 2017, followed by Tarek snagging the men’s title in 2019.
Raneem and Tarek are Egyptian, and their title is also representative of the country’s growing prominence in Squash. TK