Congrats to the Former World's Shortest Living Man for Regaining the Crown

Source - When readers leaf through the pages of the Guinness World Record books, there are a few record titles that are remembered for their iconic, timeless and noteworthy nature.

Whether it’s the woman with the longest fingernails or the world’s most tattooed man, among those categories is also the record for the shortest man living.

It’s rare these titles get broken – but when they do, it’s quite extraordinary. That’s why today we are pleased to announce that Edward Niño Hernández is the shortest male living (mobile) at 33 years of age - as part of his recent birthday celebrations! ...

“I use my smile to conquer the world! I always share my big smile with everyone; that’s my charm,” added Edward. “I can achieve everything I set my mind to. Everything is possible… Size and height don’t matter! I want people to meet who I truly am: small in size, big in heart!” And while he is thrilled to be the current record holder, this isn’t his first time in the record books.

Edward first became a Guinness World Records title holder for this same title on 13 April 2010, at 24 years, 70.21 cm. (2 ft 3.64 in) tall.

This record was surpassed on October 14, 2010, by Khagendra Thapa Magar (Nepal, b. 14 October 1992) - who became the new record title holder at 67.08 cm (2 ft 2.41 in) tall.

After Khagendra’s sudden and saddening passing on 17 January 2020, Edward regained the record title.

It's a cliche, and yet a truism, that the only thing harder than working your way to the top is staying there. That's why it's so uncommon for anyone to achieve the ultimate goal, have it taken away from them, and then regain it. It's hard to reignite that fire in your belly. To pay the price you once did to regain your status at the top of the mountain. I mean, that is the entire premise of "Rocky III" and it's theme song "Eye of the Tiger," the greatest anthem in the history of hair bands. 

So this is a day to celebrate, indeed. I can't imagine how soul crushing it must have been for Edward Nino Hernandez to obtain the ultimate prize of his World's Shortest Man title only to have it taken away from him by Khagendra Thapa Magar. After all, what's the point of being under 30 inches tall just to come in second? You might as well just be another ordinary, average, run of the mill six-footer if you're just the runner up. If you ain't first, you're last, and all that. Edward says his No. 1 celebrity crush is Megan Fox, and I don't know of any man who'd argue with his choice. But Megan Fox isn't going to bone the world's second smallest man. As long as Khagendra was drawing breath, Edward had 0.0% chance with her. Now he's got 0.1% chance. 

Which makes this a great day for everyone who isn't Khagendra Thapa Magar. It's a story of triumph and redemption. This is Michael Jordan winning his first title after his baseball career. This is Mike Tyson recapturing the WBC belt from Frank Bruno after Buster Douglas and prison. Muhammad Ali beating George Foreman for the title after getting it stripped over his Vietnam protest. 

So stand tall, Big Man. Keep living the dream. And don't ever let some 2-foot-2 punk come along and drag you down again.