Want to know who are the tallest people ever? There are all kinds of records in this world for different categories including skills, speed, time, size, length, and more. Most of these records are compiled, verified, and awarded by Guinness World Records, a renowned reference book where all these achievements are annually published. And, without a doubt, one of the most popular and intriguing records is that of the tallest person living.
But people’s extraordinary stature is not the only height that impresses audiences year after year. Just check out our list on The 10 Tallest Buildings in the World and find out for yourself.
Are you curious about the tallest people ever? Let’s take a look at this gigantic countdown!
10. Bernard Coyne
Born in Iowa, USA, Bernard Coyne was 8 feet tall, as stated in his World War I draft registration card. However, it is thought that he reached 8 feet 2 inches (249 cm) by the time of his death. As many of those who suffered from gigantism, Coyne died very young, at the age of 23.
9. Don Koehler
Don Koehler was the tallest man in the world from 1969 until his death in 1981, and he earned that title due to his impressive height: 8 feet 2 inches (249 cm). This American man is the only one in this countdown who lived for over fifty years. In fact, Koehler managed to live quite a long life: he died at the age of 55.
8. Vikas Uppal
Although never officially measured by Guinness World Records, Vikas Uppal is considered to be one of the tallest men to have ever lived. He was 8 feet, 3 inches, at the age of 17, as reported in 2004 by The Tribune. This Indian man died when he was only 21 years old, during a failed brain tumor surgical procedure.
7. Sultan Kösen
At the moment, Sultan Kösen is the tallest living person on Earth, and he has had that title since 2009. This extraordinarily tall man is a Turkish farmer who is 8 feet, 3 inches high (251 cm). Kösen, already 32 years old, is so enormous that he needs to use crutches in order to walk. His rare growth is the result of a tumor that affects his pituitary gland.
6. Edouard Beaupré
Although Edouard Beaupré was not the tallest man to have walked this Earth, he is considered as the tallest strongman and wrestler in history. When he died at the age of 23 in 1904, Beaupré was described as having a stature of 8 feet, 3 inches, and still growing. This Canadian giant performed in circuses and freak shows during the late nineteenth century.
5. Väinö Myllyrinne
Väinö Myllyrinne was a Finn towering man who, between the years 1961 and 1963, was the world’s tallest person. Strangely enough, Myllyrinne earned this title after a second growth phase in his late thirties, after which he reached a height of 8 feet, 3 inches (251 cm).
4. Leonid Stadnyk
Despite refusing to be measured according to the Guinness World Records’ standards, Leonid Stadnyk is regarded as one of the tallest men ever. With 8 feet, 5.5 inches (257 cm), this Ukrainian’s height was the result of acromegalic gigantism, a disease that causes the pituitary gland to secrete larger amounts of growth hormone than normal.
3. John F. Carroll
When standing, John F. Carroll was 8 feet tall. However, as he suffered from a severe spinal curvature, he is considered to have had a stature of over 8 feet and 7 inches. This New Yorker is one of the seventeen people in medical history to have reached a height of eight feet or more.
2. John Rogan
Born in Tennessee, United States, John Rogan is the second tallest human being in history. He lived 37 years, between the second half of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth. As he suffered from ankylosis, a disease which causes stiffness of the joints , at one point in his life he was not able to either stand, nor walk anymore.
1. Robert Wadlow
The tallest person ever, as recorded and confirmed by Guinness World Records, was Robert Wadlow, an American man who reached 8 feet, 11.1 inches. Also known as the Giant of Illinois and the Alton Giant, Wadlow only lived 22 years, from 1981 to 1940.
