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.
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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.
