KATHMANDU: The world’s shortest man who could walk, as verified by Guinness World Records, died on Friday at a hospital in Nepal.
Khagendra Thapa Magar, who measured 67.08cm (two feet and 2.41 inches), died of pneumonia at a hospital in Pokhara, 200km from Kathmandu, where he lived with his parents.
“He has been in and out of hospital because of pneumonia. But this time his heart was also affected. He passed away today,” his brother Mahesh Thapa Magar told a news agency.
Magar was first declared the world’s shortest man in 2010 after his 18th birthday, and was photographed holding a certificate only a bit smaller than him.
He eventually lost the title after Nepal’s Chandra Bahadur Dangi, who measured 54.6 centimetres, was named the world’s shortest mobile man. Magar regained the title after Dangi’s death in 2015.
“He was so tiny when he was born that he could fit in the palm of your hand, and it was very hard to bathe him because he was so small,” said his father Roop Bahadur.
As the world’s shortest man, the 27-year-old travelled to more than a dozen countries and made television appearances in European countries and the United States.
“We’re terribly sad to hear the news from Nepal that Khagendra is no longer with us,” said Craig Glenday, Guinness World Records editor-in-chief.
“Life can be challenging when you weigh just six kilograms and you don’t fit into a world built for the average person. But Khagendra certainly didn’t let his small size stop him from getting the most out of life” he added.
Magar became an official face of Nepal’s tourism campaign, which featured him as the smallest man in a country that is home to the world’s highest peak, Mount Everest.
During his stint he met other short people around the world, including the shortest woman, Jyoti Amge, from India.
The world’s shortest non-mobile man remains Junrey Balawing of the Philippines, who measures only 59.93 centimetres but is unable to walk or stand unaided, according to Guinness World Records.
