Junrey Balawing

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Junrey Balawing
Born (1993-06-12) June 12, 1993 (age 21)
Sindangan, Zamboanga del Norte, Philippines
Nationality Filipino
Known for Former shortest living man
Height 1 ft 10 in (0.56 m)

Junrey Balawing (/nˈr/ joon-REE; Tagalog pronunciation: [dʒunˈrɪ bɐˈlawIŋ] ( ); born June 12, 1993) is a Filipino and former record holder at the Guinness Book of World Records. Balawing was the former world's shortest man alive measuring at 59.93 centimetres (23.59 in) tall.[1] The declaration came during Balawing's 18th birthday celebration.[2] Guinness World Records official said Balawing broke the record of Khagendra Thapa Magar of Nepal, who is 0.67 m (2 ft 2 13 in) tall.[3]

He stopped growing at the age of 1. Balawing, the son of a poor blacksmith, was born and lives in Sindangan, Zamboanga del Norte, about 865 kilometres (537 mi) south of the capital Manila. Although he was documented as the shortest living man, he missed the title of shortest man in history, which was held by Gul Mohammed of India, who was 57 centimetres (22 in) tall and died on October 1, 1997.[4][5]

In February 2012, Chandra Bahadur Dangi of Nepal, who stands 54.6 centimetres (21.5 in) tall was declared the world's shortest living man. As a result, Junrey held the record for less than a year.[6]

See also[edit]


  1. ^ News Asia-Pacific. (2011-06-12). Philippines man crowned world's shortest. BBC News. Retrieved 2011-07-08.
  2. ^ Jay Directo (AFP). (2011-06-12). Filipino teen Junrey Balawing declared world's shortest man News.Com Australia. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
  3. ^ Associated Press. (2011-06-12). World record as 60cm teen Junrey Balawing turns 18 The Australian. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
  4. ^ Everett Rosenfeld. (June 2011). New 'World's Shortest Man' Celebrates Birthday, World Record Newsfeed Time. Retrieved 2011-06-15.
  5. ^ Abhijit Naik. (2010-06-29) Smallest Man in the World. Buzzle.Com Website Retrieved 2011-06-17.
  6. ^ Taggart, Frankie (2012-02-26). "Sorry Junrey, Nepali is world's shortest man". Agence France Presse. ABS-CBN News. Retrieved February 26, 2012.