15 December 2006
By: Stefan Anitei, Science Editor
The World's Tallest Man Rescues Chinese Dolphins
Only his long arms reached the dolphins' stomach
The world's tallest man used his super-long arms to save the lives of two dying dolphins in China by reaching deep into their stomachs to pull out pieces of plastic. The dolphins got sick after nibbling on plastic from the edge of their pool at an aquarium in the city of Fushun, Liaoning province. Doctors at the aquarium could not use surgical instruments to remove the plastic, because the dolphins' stomachs contracted in response to the instruments and the arms of ordinary people were too short to reach the stomachs. Chen Lujun, the manager of the Royal Jidi Ocean World aquarium, said the shape of the dolphins' stomachs made it difficult to push an instrument very far in, without hurting the animals. Veterinarians then decided to ask for help from Bao Xishun, 54, a 7-foot-9 herdsman (2.36 m) from Inner Mongolia with 41.7-inch (1.05 m) arms. Bao Xishun was confirmed in 2005 by Guinness World Records as the world's tallest living man. In an operation shown on local television, a dozen men held the dolphins down, while Bao slid his long arm down their throats to grab the plastic. The jaws of the dolphins were held back by towels so Bao could reach inside the animals without being bitten. Bao reached his height in a seven-year growth spurt that began in his adolescence and which doctors cannot explain. After a career in the army, where he was recruited for a basketball team, he returned to Inner Mongolia where he hires himself out for publicity stunts in addition to herding livestock. ''When we failed to get the objects out we sought the help of Bao Xishun from Inner Mongolia and he did it successfully yesterday,'' said Lujun. ''The two dolphins are in very good condition now and are recovering well.'' ''Some very small plastic pieces are still left in the dolphins' stomachs,'' said Zhu Xiaoling, a local doctor. ''However the dolphins will be able to digest these and are expected to recover soon.''
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