Episode 3 Officially Amazing

# Officially, Officially, Officially Amazing! #

Welcome to a specially synchronised splashy edition

of Officially Amazing.

Two large men,

two large fridges -

but what's the record?

No, it's not an eating contest.

And, hula, baby!

Our three icons get to shake their snaky hips

but, first,

time for a dip.

This is synchronised swimming,

a breathtaking mix of swimming, dance and gymnastics.

It features beautiful, balletic, brilliantly-named moves

such as this -

the "barracuda airborne split",

and this -

the "porpoise twist spin".

Today,

three members of the City Of Leeds Synchro Team

will be attempting the world record for the...

That means three swimmers,

linked feet-to-neck in an underwater human wheel, like this...

They'll be cheered on by their coach and team-mates, including Jeanne -

Britain's oldest competitive synchronised swimmer.

Hello, Jeanne!

Let's meet our twirling, whirling trio...

Rachel, Becky, Greta, it's great to meet you.

So how does the dolphin compare to other synchronised swimming moves?

Is it one of the more difficult ones?

Usually you can do it by yourself but then when it's with

-three people it's a lot harder.

-It gets harder with more people.

Cos you've got to coordinate and think about each other.

It's all about the timing, cos if it's wrong then...

What would really throw off this record attempt?

If our feet are...detatched from the neck.

So you've got to get five rotations in 40 seconds or under.

Is that going to be doable?

-ALL:

-Yeah.

A unanimous yes, that's great.

'Well, they're already synchronised in their confidence -

'let's get the rules.'

If the dolphin formation breaks, the attempt is over.

The girls must perform five full rotations,

and they must do that in less than 40 seconds

to achieve this new world record.

Becky will be leading the dolphin.

She's in a blue swimsuit to make the rotations easy to count.

Can they do this?

I "sink" so!

Mmm! Mark, over to you.

Becka, Greta, Rachel, in your own time.

'Coach Sarah even has a microphone linked to an underwater speaker,

'so she can communicate with the team during the attempt.'

'Good luck!'

'It's time to sink and swim.

'The clock will start once Becky, in blue, surfaces for the first time.

'And they're off!'

That's one. Well done, keep going.

'Look at that! The girls are joined feet-to neck,

'propelling their human dolphin-wheel

'using their hands and arms!'

-Two...

-Ooh, this is magical!

'Each swimmer only has a split second

'to grab a breath on each rotation.

'It's a real physical and mental challenge,

'but they're also battling the stopwatch.

'Are they spinning fast enough for the record?'

That's it. Keep going.

'And what if they get dizzy?

'Just one tiny mistake, now, could break that perfect circle,

'and end their attempt.'

Four...

Make sure you finish well on the last one.

A bit more. Keep going, keep going, keep going...

'And that's five rotations!' Brilliant!

Excellent work!

I've seen some dolphins in my time but that was by far

the most impressive.

So, five rotations, but were they all valid and fast enough?

Before we find out,

official adjudicator Mark checks the replay to make sure

feet remained attached to necks throughout.

Now, did they beat that target of 40 seconds?

It was a valid attempt.

You achieved...

..23.51 seconds, which is a brand-new

Guinness World Records title!

-GIRLS CHEER

-Brilliant!

'Incredible!

'They smashed the target by over 16 seconds.'

Rachel, Becky and Greta -

three sensational synchronised swimming superstars!

Now Al and Haruka discover a new use for some old fridges.

On Officially Amazing, we have our own illustrious competitive contest.

But in Italy they now have something similar,

only a bit more muscular,

with two fierce World's Strongest Man rivals.

In the colossal corner,

the Nordic Nemesis,

the ice-man from Iceland...

And, in the huge corner,

the Lithuanian lion-heart,

the beefcake from the Baltics,

..or...

..for short.

Back in series three,

we saw Big Zee giving a car a lift.

But how will he get on when he has to hoist two huge fridges?

He and Thor are attempting the record for...

The target is a cool 20 seconds,

and Big Zee's up first.

-Go!

-HORN BLARES

Together, these fridges weigh almost half a tonne!

Big Zee's turning bright pink under that enormous weight!

Thus matching the colour of his trainers.

Fantastic face-foot coordination!

Oh, he's dropped them!

So close to the finish!

Can he drag them over that line?

Yes, he can!

Fabulous fridge-ferrying!

Now the mighty Thor.

-Go!

-HORN BLARES

Look at him go!

It is, of course, no surprise

that a man from Iceland

is good at carrying fridges.

Incredible!

He was definitely quicker than Big Zee,

but did he do it in less than 20 seconds?

HE SPEAKS ITALIAN

AUDIENCE CHEERS

Yes!

By just 0.4 seconds, he's muscled his way to a new world record!

Big Zee doesn't look too happy.

Well, Thor is milking it a bit,

but they're just very competitive people,

much like these three.

Centuries ago,

a prophecy told of three skilled knights...

who would engage in feats of great

world...

record-iness,

that, one day, others may try in their futuristic homes.

Now that prophecy has been realised.

From the east,

Sir Mr of Cherry.

From the west,

Sir US of Ray.

And, from somewhere in the middle,

Sir Sizzling of Steve.

This is...

..new!

Previously, on Officially Competitive...

Team Japan triumphed, as Haruka filled her belly with jelly.

That left Ray in last place.

But, today, we have an athletic event -

my man's speciality!

Today's record requires a heady mix of speed, skill and swivelling hips.

Any idea what it might be?

I don't think we're making it obvious enough, Haruka.

Plus I'm not sure I can keep this up.

Maybe you should just say...

Today our competitors will be battling Hula to Hula to Hula,

in the...

It's hula-hula, baby!

Well, sort of.

Let's get the team talks.

Steve, rather excitingly,

you're a former Hula Hooping world record holder.

It's just that your world record was for Hula Hoops

that didn't actually exist -

they were a video-game Hula Hoop.

Yes, that's correct.

But real Hula Hooping - can you actually do it?

Erm, no.

Steve's "hoops" don't seem very high,

but I think Ray is ready for a hippy-hippy-shake up!

Ray, without question,

you're the speediest and most agile athlete here,

so tell me you're going to get this Hula Hoop record.

We're going to get this Hula Hoop record.

You look like a man on a mission.

Who's the Hula Hooping man?

I'm the Hula Hooping man.

I didn't hear you.

I'm the Hula Hooping man!

That's the Hula Hooping man.

Yes, Ray is a Hula Hooping man.

I guess that makes Cherry San

a Hula Hooping king!

How hard is it

doing running and Hula Hooping at the same time?

-TRANSLATION:

-Well, it's like trying to do laundry

while cooking at the same time. It can be done, but you might end up

putting gravy in your laundry instead of fabric softener.

Still, at least your laundry would have the delicious scent

of a Sunday roast!

Anyway, to the rules!

The hoop must start revolving before the competitor

crosses the start line,

it must rotate between the shoulders and the hips,

and the target for this new record is to run 50 metres,

with a spinning hoop,

in 14 seconds.

Ray's up first.

When I say "Hula" you say "Hoop".

-Hula...

-Hoop!

-Hula...

-Hoop!

All right, let's go! Get in there, baby!

The hoop must begin spinning before you start.

Three...

LAUGHTER

Hmm. Not an auspicious start.

Three...

LAUGHTER

Ray's just kidding around....

I think.

Can you say it really fast?

Three!

Erm, Ray, hold on - hold on, man.

I'm calling in the special reinforcements.

-That's what I need, yeah.

-Give me this...

-..and it's out of here.

-Thank you.

-All right. Hit it.

That's better - a weightier hoop.

Yeah, it was all the hoop's fault.

Come on, Ray!

-Three, two, one - go!

-HORN BLARES

it's working! Look at him go!

Go, Ray! Come on, Ray! Keep going! There we go...

And look at him stop.

I'll be honest,

I'm just relieved he made it over the start line!

Well, if Ray can't make it to Shantha,

Shantha will have to go to Ray to measure his distance.

Next, a man who said he can't Hula Hoop.

But was that just mind games?

Steve, are you ready?

No.

Hang on...

-Three, two, one - go!

-HORN BLARES

He looks like a crab

trapped in a hairband!

But he's slowly inching his way to victory.

What grit! What style!

What athletic...

LAUGHTER ..incompetence.

Ray's distance is starting to look quite good.

Drop the hoop, please.

Once again, Shantha is forced to hike back down the course

to do some measuring.

This was supposed to be a record based on speed

not distance!

Before Mr Cherry sets off,

let's just check the finish line is still there.

Yup. It's there.

It just looks very lonely.

But surely it'll see some action now!

Mr Cherry has held 16 world records

and he's a three-time Officially Competitive champion.

All he has to do is run further than Ray and Steve.

It's an open goal for the great man!

-Mr Cherry, are you ready?

-OK!

Three...

The hoop must be spinning, Mr Cherry!

Mr Cherry seems a bit unsure of the protocol here.

The hoop must be spinning!

OK.

He went over the line. He went over the line.

Stand behind the line,

and spin the hoop before beginning!

Haruka's doing her best to explain,

but our great champion is in total disarray!

Extraordinary scenes!

Mr Cherry!

The hoop must be spinning!

Shantha's beginning to lose her patience,

and who could blame her?

This record has been a shambles!

Mr Cherry, you must have your feet behind the line!

He only needs to run about five metres,

but he can't even get over the start line!

Three, two, one - go!

LAUGHTER

So, no world record today, then?

That was rubbish!

But was it less rubbish than Ray and Steve?

MR CHEERY GASPS

It was entertaining, if not record-breaking,

but what about the most important competitive point?

Well, in third place was Mr Cherry...

as he wasn't able to cross the start line with the hoop above his waist.

-TRANSLATION:

-Fair dos, love.

And the winner,

with a distance of

4 metres 30...

Just 45 metres from the finish line!

..is Ray.

CHEERING

Oh, we won it!

We went as far as we needed to go to win!

So, after that whole heap of Hula hopelessness,

Ray proved to be the least worst.

Hey! He still went three metres further than Steve!

And that makes it a three-way tie on the leaderboard.

But who will triumph next time,

as our legends practise the fine art

of candle-blowing-outing?

Join us then for more authentic awesomeness,

like this...

# Well...

# You can't get better than Becky, Rachel and Greta

# When it come to synchro swimming

# This amazing three did a super speedy

# Record for dolphin spinning

# Our competitors were all poop

# With their Hula Hoop

# Ray was rubbish but won

# At least Steve looked like he had fun

# And Thor was quicker than Big Zee with his fridges

# But here come the rubbish bits

# The outtakes! #

Maybe you should just say...

(Ow, that actually hurts!)

BLEEP.

When I say "Hula you say "Hoop".

Oh, I didn't even say it!

LAUGHTER

Aargh!