Bao Xishun (sometimes rendered Bao Xi Shun; born 2 November 1951) is a Chinese herdsman from Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, recognized by Guinness World Records as one of the world's tallest living men at tall. He was formerly certified as the tallest living man by the Guinness World Records. On September 17, 2009, Sultan Kösen overtook Bao Xishun as the tallest living man.
Early life
Bao was born in a village on the edge of the , part of Ongniud Banner under the administration of Chifeng. His parents were of average height, with his mother standing at and his father at . The First Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University attested that Bao did not have gigantism and that his pituitary gland showed no abnormalities. Bao experienced calcium deficiency and nutritional imbalances as a child,
Bao claims to have been of normal height until he was fifteen or sixteen years old, when he grew to . Bao officially took the record, having been measured as taller than Charbib.
Personal life
Bao married saleswoman Xia Shujuan on 24 March 2007. The Mongolian ceremony took place on 12 July 2007. Bao's son was born at a hospital in Zunhua, Hebei province on 2 October 2008.
Bao appeared on the eleventh episode of The Amazing Race 16 as the "Pit Stop" greeter, which aired on 2 May 2010.
As of early 2024, Bao has remained largely at home, while his wife works at a community centre. Their son, Bao Tianyou, then aged 15, was in his last year of junior middle school and stood at "nearly two metres".