Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Skipping feat a possible world record
AFTER eight hours of rope skipping, Pretoria man SD Heijns believed that he broke the Guinness World Record for this form of exercise at Time Square, Menlyn.
Heijns, 21, started skipping at 6am yesterday and he did not miss a beat until he eventually had skipped 71 185 times over the rope.
The previous world record was 70 031 skips in eight hours – so Heijns beat the record by 1 154 skips.
While it was plain sailing physically, for this very fit man, it did take its emotional toll. Heijns said he started off too fast, but later found his pace and slowed down a bit, which proved to be the winning recipe.
To have broken the current eighthour record – currently held in the US – Heijns only had to complete 70 032 skips. But he went beyond that and is very proud of his achievement.
The feat will first have to be verified by Guinness World Records, but Heijns is confident that it was a clean sweep.
The record attempt will now be registered with Guinness World Records, along with precise electronic data which captured each and every skip. The Sports Science Lab monitored and verified this.
This is only the first of three stints, as Heijns will in six weeks attempt a 12-hour skipping session. His last stint will be six weeks later, when he will attempt to skip for 24 hours.
It is not yet known where these attempts will take place.
Asked why he is attempting this, Heijns replied: “To bring the record to South Africa, to test the limits of the human body, and to demonstrate the fitness potential of training with minimal equipment.”