Jumbo jam

Cambodians recently made headlines for setting a Guinness World Record for the most number of men who simultaneously did a bridal carry.

A total of 245 Cambodian men carried their partners — wives, girlfriends, sisters, or mothers — with one arm under the legs and one behind the back for one minute to set the mark on International Women’s Day last 8 March.

After a minute, they continued to carry their partners as part of a contest to see who could last the longest to win a car. Reun Vichet, 27, and his wife Him Pisey from Kampot province remained standing until the following day — eight hours and 20 minutes — to win the Mazda sedan prize, the New Straits Times reports.

In a video of the bridal carry competition sponsored by an energy drink, the contestants are shown dropping out one by one, unable to carry on. Like the losers, two female passengers on a recent Air New Zealand flight from Napier to Auckland could not be “carried” by the plane.

Per flight rules, all seat armrests must be down before the pilot can take off for passenger safety. The flight attendant, however, could not put down the armrest where Angel Harding was seated because her large arm was blocking it.

As the plane was taxiing on the tarmac, the attendant made a call, and the pilot turned back to the gate. All passengers were then told to disembark, much to their inconvenience.

According to Harding, the flight attendant told the heavy-set lady and her similarly-sized companion that they should have bought two seats on the flight and advised them to do so the next time they flew. Except for the two, the passengers were transferred to another plane and resumed their flight.

“My thoughts are they took me off because of my build, because of my size,” the New York Post quoted Harding as saying.

Despite the apologetic Air New Zealand rebooking them on another flight without charge and giving them free accommodations and meals, Harding was determined to sue the airline for the alleged humiliation and trauma they suffered. 

WITH AFP