Man spent 8 years building 23ft tall Eiffel Tower replica out of matchsticks but suffered heartbreak at the end
- One man spent eight years meticulously building a replica of the Eiffel Tower
- The 23-foot-tall model was created using 700,000 matchsticks
- However, he was snubbed for a Guinness World Record – here’s why
Published on Feb 08, 2024 at 9:21 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Feb 09, 2024 at 9:21 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Adam Gray
One man who spent eight years meticulously building a 23-foot-tall Eiffel Tower replica using 700,000 matchsticks had his efforts end in heartbreak.
That’s because his hopes of winning a Guinness World Record were dashed for a rather bizarre reason.
French artist, Richard Plaud, explained that it was a childhood dream to become a world-record holder and get his name in the famous book.
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And he believed that his 7.2 meter-high Eiffel Tower, built from matchsticks at 1/45th scale, was the perfect way to do exactly that.
The 47-year-old estimates that he invested 4,200 hours and 706,900 sulfur-less matches, 23 kilos of glue, and sheer grit in his unique ode to the iconic French landmark.
“Real in-depth work. I started in December 2015, and I stuck the last one on December 27, the centenary of Gustave Eiffel’s death,” he said.
He aimed to squash the previous record, set by Toufic Daher, by 67 centimeters.
Other weird records include this two-legged robot’s 100-meter record – which is astonishingly quick.
In terms of amazing people, the world’s most traveled man has a record no one will ever beat and this man broke the world speed record with his homemade remote-controlled car.
So with the imposing ode to the Eiffel Tower undoubtedly a humongous feat – why did Guinness World Records refuse to give him the nod?
The organization claim that it was because the 706,900 matchsticks were not available commercially – and had been altered from their original form.
What’s more, despite his sheer dedication, Plaud had taken a shortcut.
He bought 190,000 headless matches in bulk, instead of removing the tips himself.
According to the authorities at the Guinness World Record, this rendered the project null and void.
“It’s disappointing, frustrating, incomprehensible, and not very fair play,” he told The Times.
It’s said his wife was just happy to get her living room back after all those years.
People lauded Plaud’s efforts on Facebook.
“No need to be in the Guinness! You are a winner because of your prowess and so many hours of work,” one said.
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All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
