Meet Igor, New tallest man in U.S.

By: Kara Gilmour
Staff Writer
Published: May 26, 2010

New tallest man in U.S. is Igor Vovkovinskiy. He holds the new U.S. Guinness World tallest man record and standing 7 feet, 8.33 inches. Vovkovinskiy was the tallest child through school and was already a man standing 6 feet tall when he was 7 years old.

"It feels good to finally have proof that I am the Tallest Man in America. Everyone is always asking me if I'm certain that I'm the (largest) and I was never able to prove it," he said in a statement. "Now that I have this certificate to hang on my wall, I could finally show it!" He traveled to New York City where Guinness representatives made it official on the Dr. Oz Show.

Vovkovinskiy, who wears a shoe size of 26, if from Rochester, Minnesota and lives with his mother Svetlana. At age 7, she realized that a child standing 6 feet and weighing 200 pounds wasn't normal, so she took him to the Mayo Clinic. He was diagnoses with pituitary disease, a growth hormone disorder that is responsible for his rapid development.

More interesting, his incredible growth actually started at an earlier age. He stood 5 feet tall when he was just 3 years old, already becoming an adult and standing higher than his mother's height. The disease hasn't kept him from a normal life, he is now pursuing a degree in paralegal studies at the Minnesota School of Business.