Bao Xi Shun: A history of the world's tallest people

China’s Bao Xi Shun came along in 2005 to take the title of the world’s tallest person from Tunisia’s Radhouane Charbib.

After several rounds of measurements supervised by medical professionals, including measuring him standing and lying down, he was found to be just 2.5 mm (0.1 in) taller than his predecessor, at 236.1 cm (7 ft 8.9 in).

It was a tiny difference, but enough for him to keep the title until 2009.

Early life

Xi Shun, sometimes styled as Xishun, was born on 2 November 1951 in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, to parents of average height.

As a youngster, he was shy, but would often offer help to the people of his village in the hope of making some extra money for his family.

Xi Shun was a normal height until the age of 15 or 16, but grew to 201 cm (6 ft 7 in) by the time he was 20.

He eventually grew so tall he needed to have his clothes and bed specially made.

He worked as a herdsman, an usher at a restaurant, and served in the People’s Liberation Army - where he played on his unit's basketball team - for three years, but said he struggled to find employment after growing to a record-breaking height.

Things changed when he officially earned his record though. He became a huge celebrity, who was paid to attend events as a special guest.

Taking the crown

Guinness World Records Editor-in-Chief Craig Glenday recalls meeting Xi Shun, the first ever record-breaking tall person he’d seen in the flesh, when he came to London in 2005 to be measured for his record application.

He recounts in his own words...

Xi Shun was the first holder of the world's tallest man record that I'd met and measured, and I'll never forget the experience of picking him up at the airport when he travelled to London. He came walking slowly through Heathrow arrivals area on crutches, and my first thought was that he looked like an elegant giraffe, with every step carefully placed. It was a mind-blowing experience seeing someone so tall, and also fascinating to watch everyone else's reaction to seeing such a giant figure.

Xi Shun with Craig Glenday

After accepting his GWR certificate [after being ratified as the world's tallest man), Xi Shun quickly became an iconic figure globally, thanks in part to his resplendent in his traditional Mongolian dress. It's a cliche to say it but he really is a gentle giant. He kindly brought me a gift I still treasure - a Mongolian ear pick, which sits in a tiny shoe and is traditionally placed by the front door of your home to allow visitors to pick their ears clean before entering. All the better to hear your hosts and enjoy the conversation, presumably. The irony of the man with such enormous feet handing over a gift of a tiny shoe was not lost on me!

I'll treasure the time we spent sightseeing in London and hearing the story of his life. He explained how he struggled to earn a living because he was too tall to work the fields where he lives, so he was hired to stand outside a restaurant and welcome visitors - "you too can grow big and strong by eating here", he'd tell visitors. He also said he was worried that he would never find love, so it was wonderful to finally hear from him that his fame had helped find him a wife and eventually to start a family.

Hearing the story of how he saved the lives of those dolphins in the aqua park also inspired the GWR 2018 Superhero edition - to me, Xi Shun is a real-life superhero!

An illustration of Bao Xi Shun

An unlikely hero

Saved dolphins in an aqua park? As wild as that may sound, it really did happen.

In 2006, two dolphins at the Royal Jidi Ocean World park in the city of Fushun, China, fell ill after eating pieces of the plastic edge of their pool.

After staff did everything they could to extract the plastic to no avail, someone came up with the genius ideas of contacting Xi Shun.

It must have been a peculiar phone call for Xi Shun to receive, and no one could have blamed him if he’d thought it was nothing but a silly prank.

But he was more than happy to help, and quickly made his way to the aquarium from his home in Inner Mongolia.

He stuck his arm, which measured almost three and a half feet, into the dolphins’ mouths to pull out the pieces of plastic and save their lives.

“The two dolphins are in very good condition now,” said the aquarium’s manager, Chen Lujun, at the time.

Now 73, Xi Shun came to accept his extraordinary height, but did once say he wished he was “normal”.

We think he’s amazing just the way he is.

He lives a much quieter life these days with his wife and son, although he is still a famous face in China and still makes special appearances as "the giant".