Strangers help world's tallest man
Local organizations and foreigners have given the 8-foot, 5-inch man everything from meals to a giant bicycle.
By OLGA BONDARUK | Associated Press
from the March 28, 2008 edition
Podolyantsi, Ukraine - Leonid Stadnik's phenomenal height has forced him to quit a job he loved and to stoop as he moves around his house.
But Mr. Stadnik, who Guinness World Records says is the world's tallest human, says his condition has also taught him that there are many kindhearted strangers.
Since his recognition by Ukrainian record keepers four years ago, and by Guinness last year, people from all over Ukraine and the world have sent him outsized clothing, provided his home with running water, and presented him with a giant bicycle. This week, he got a new car, courtesy of President Viktor Yushchenko.
"Thanks to good people I have shoes and clothes," said the former veterinarian, who still lives with his mother.
In 2006, Stadnik was officially measured at 8 feet, 5 inches tall, surpassing a 7-foot-9-inch Chinese man to claim the title of the world's tallest person.
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http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0328/p04s01-woeu.html