Pennod 1 Dyn Talaf y Byd

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-My name is Derwyn Jones.

-After a career playing

-rugby at international level...

-..I'm now a rugby commentator

-and businessman.

-One of the reasons for my success

-on the rugby field was my height.

-At six foot ten inches, I'm the

-tallest player to represent Wales.

-I've faced a few challenges

-because of my height...

-..but they're nothing compared to

-the life of one man I hope to meet.

-The man I'm referring to...

-..is Sultan Kosen.

-He is the world's tallest man.

-Welcome to the world of the giants.

-In the modern world, only ten

-people have grown to eight feet.

-In September 2009,

-Sultan Kosen became one of them.

-At the time, his official height

-was eight feet and one inch.

-He was crowned

-the world's tallest man.

-One in seven billion.

-With the new title,

-Sultan became world renowned...

-..but he was hoping

-for more than this.

-As a single man,

-he hoped all the attention...

-..would have brought something

-far more important than fame.

-I want to find a wife.

-Soon after this,

-Sultan received some bad news.

-You're getting taller.

-You're getting taller.

-

-This threatened his life.

-The greatest impact is on the heart.

-The heart swells,

-the muscles get thicker...

-..and the heart can stop beating.

-This is my story and the story

-of a man who's even taller then me.

-Sultan Kosen,

-the world's tallest man.

-Sultan's life began

-in a small village in rural Turkey.

-At eight years of age,

-he began to grow uncontrollably.

-In his teens,

-he was over seven feet tall.

-Because of his height,

-Sultan lost his self-confidence...

-..and he retreated to the loneliness

-of the family farm.

-He didn't socialize

-or leave the farm.

-He lost his childhood.

-But Sultan looked beyond

-his lonely existence...

-..and with his family's support...

-..he applied

-to the Guinness World Records...

-..to measure him

-as the world's tallest man.

-In September 2009,

-in a ceremony in London...

-..Guinness World Records

-unveiled Sultan Kosen...

-..as the world's tallest man.

-He gained overnight fame.

-He went from being a shy man

-from a lonely farm in Turkey...

-..to the front pages

-of the newspapers.

-He travelled around the world,

-appearing on TV.

-The press followed him everywhere.

-He's prominent on the Internet

-with many images of him...

-..from his coronation in 2009.

-Contacting him was relatively easy.

-After sending him an email,

-I receive a reply almost instantly.

-He invites me to go to Turkey to

-meet him after we arrange the date.

-Over a cup of tea, I discussed

-meeting him with my wife.

-Yes, I'm really excited.

-I'm looking forward to looking up

-to someone who's taller than me.

-I've never done that before.

-Meeting the world's tallest man,

-at eight foot four inches...

-..is going to be very special.

-It'll be an unforgettable

-experience. He's quite a character.

-What do you think you'll say

-to him when you meet him?

-It's so exciting,

-I don't know what I'll say to him.

-Think about the difference in size.

-The difference in height

-between Shane Williams and me...

-..is the same as me and Sultan.

-I might be speechless,

-I might be in shock.

-We'll just see what happens.

-Is Sultan married,

-has he got a girlfriend?

-I don't think Sultan is with anyone.

-He's had a difficult time

-finding a partner.

-It's hard enough meeting someone

-when you're six foot ten.

-That's one of his main problems

-and he lives a lonely life.

-Although the fame transformed

-Sultan's life...

-..he still dreams of a life

-with his own family one day.

-A job, a wife. That's all he wants.

-He's been self-conscious

-since he was a boy...

-..but with the new title,

-his self-esteem has grown.

-He has enough confidence

-to visit the Turkish baths.

-This eases the pressure

-on the muscles...

-..that carry his eight-foot frame.

-Sultan's feet are 14.3 inches long.

-They're the longest feet

-in the world.

-His hands are 10.8 inches,

-again the longest in the world.

-In his first official measurement

-by Guinness World Records...

-..Sultan was hailed

-as the tallest man in 20 years...

-..to reach a height of eight feet.

-This is my house.

-I'm six foot ten inches.

-I have to crouch down

-to walk under door frames.

-Sultan would have difficulty

-walking down this corridor.

-His head would probably

-touch the ceiling.

-He'd struggle to fit in this house.

-Ankara, the capital city of Turkey.

-700 miles from the village

-where Sultan Kosen was raised.

-Welcome to my home.

-After being crowned

-the world's tallest man...

-..he received an unexpected gift

-from Turkey's Prime Minister.

-The use of a flat

-in the capital city.

-He's very proud of his new house.

-Moving away from home

-and leaving his family...

-..meant that Sultan

-missed having a partner even more.

-The bedroom.

-The bed is nine feet

-and eight inches long.

-Almost ten feet long.

-A giant's bed, according to Sultan.

-The longest bed in the world

-but no partner to share it with.

-Unfortunately, nothing else

-in Sultan's house is big enough.

-There used to be a shower here

-but it was too small.

-The only way to have a shower

-is by sitting down.

-The sink and the mirror are too low.

-As a rugby player,

-I had an injury or two...

-..but I always recovered.

-For Sultan,

-his medical problems are permanent.

-I think he's more familiar

-with hospitals than sporting arenas.

-Sultan's received medical treatment

-throughout his life.

-These visits have been crucial...

-..to see if the tumour he had

-is still present.

-Dr Alper Gurlek

-became Sultan's doctor in 2008.

-He was very tall

-compared to his counterparts...

-..when he was seven

-or eight years old.

-They discovered a pituitary tumour.

-Sultan's pituitary gland

-was damaged when he was a child.

-This resulted in him

-producing too many hormones.

-This condition is called gigantism.

-People who have gigantism grow

-even when the growth plates close.

-Every part of the body grows,

-from the feet to the hands.

-This condition, where parts

-of the body grow excessively...

-..is called acromegaly.

-His growth hormone

-is still in excess state.

-The tips of the bones

-begin horizontal enlargement.

-Expansion occurs.

-That's why Sultan has features

-of very tall stature...

-..and increased size of the limbs.

-Even though large hands and feet

-are an embarrassment to Sultan...

-..they don't threaten his life.

-In comparison to Sultan's hand,

-it's very small.

-Both the sizes

-of the fingers and the palm...

-..you see this area of the palm,

-it's very great.

-It's very huge.

-He's become used

-to medical examinations like this.

-However, acromegaly causes the

-internal organs to grow excessively.

-That is life-threatening.

-All the organs are enlarged...

-..because the growth hormone

-affects all the internal organs.

-The heart, liver, tongue,

-whatever you think.

-Heart failure may occur at the end.

-Sultan has had numerous operations

-to stop his growth...

-..by removing the tumour

-in his brain.

-Often, the tumour is very large.

-It causes problems for the surgeon.

-He's had three operations,

-X-ray treatment...

-..and he's still taking two drugs.

-When the doctor examined

-Sultan's blood sample...

-..he could see that hormone levels

-remained at dangerously high levels.

-This is bad news.

-Unfortunately, despite both

-medical therapy and radiotherapy...

-..he still has growth hormones

-in excess state.

-Now we are dealing

-with that problem.

-Sultan was concerned

-about the blood test results.

-He says he cried for hours

-when he was alone.

-Behind the title

-World's Tallest Man...

-..I think there's an affectionate

-and lonely man.

-It's hard to imagine

-the type of life he has lived.

-In and out of hospitals

-throughout his life.

-I also had medical problems

-because of my height.

-How do my medical problems

-compare to his?

-I'm in Cardiff Arms Park

-visiting one of my former clubs.

-I'm meeting orthopaedic

-specialist Daniel Lewis...

-..to learn more

-about Sultan's condition...

-..and discuss some of the

-medical problems I've encountered.

-Mr Lewis, thank you for spending

-some of your time with us.

-I'm very tall,

-but why is Sultan as tall as he is?

-Tell me more about his condition.

-Sultan has a medical problem

-called acromegaly.

-The tumour on his pituitary gland

-produces excess hormones...

-..especially the growth hormone.

-He keeps on growing.

-I'm six foot ten inches.

-Wales is a nation of small people.

-What happened to me?

-Within any population, there are

-variations between people's heights.

-Some are short and there's

-a broad spectrum to the tallest.

-Most people are in between.

-I grew far taller

-than anyone in school.

-I had problems with arthritis in

-my knees, called Osgood Schlatters.

-It's a condition named

-after two doctors...

-..working at the turn

-of the last century.

-Boys, normally in their teens, have

-pain and swelling in their knees.

-I had a lot of problems but

-very little when compared to Sultan.

-No, a little different.

-After the break,

-Sultan's story moves to London...

-..where he'll visit

-the Guinness World Records.

-He'll be measured again to see if

-he remains the world's tallest man.

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-My name is Derwyn Jones.

-I'm hoping to visit Sultan Kosen

-in Turkey.

-He's the world's tallest man.

-He's held the record since 2009.

-In 2010, he returned to Guinness

-World Records to be measured again.

-Sultan was hoping to set

-a new record.

-Sultan is so much taller than

-any of the recent claims we've had.

-I think he's only the eleventh

-person in history over eight foot.

-This measurement

-won't be official...

-..but it will show if Sultan has

-grown since the first measurement.

-He was eight foot once inch.

-Ideally, we would measure height

-with a stadiometer...

-..which is a sliding wooden scale...

-..but they don't make stadiometers

-big enough in any country.

-I haven't seen one

-big enough anywhere.

-We mark the height on the wall.

-In theory,

-we'd do this three times a day.

-We'd take the average

-of the six measurements.

-You get smaller as the day goes on

-because your spine compresses.

-If Sultan has grown...

-..the last operation to remove the

-pituitary gland tumour has failed.

-The eight foot mark here. The

-maximum height on average is here.

-It's two inches taller

-than we expected.

-The measurement this morning

-may have been eight foot three.

-You're getting taller.

-This is good news for his record...

-..but the extra growth

-causes great concern.

-If the tumour that caused the

-excess growth is still present...

-..this could mean

-that Sultan continues to grow.

-The greatest threat is that

-the internal organs are growing too.

-This could cause his death.

-After 27 years

-of medical problems...

-..he wants to live

-a healthy life like normal people.

-Despite the bad news...

-..Sultan is willing to be measured

-for a new world record.

-We often find

-with the tallest man category...

-..other associated records.

-The tallest man usually has

-the biggest hands, the biggest feet.

-I'm going to try two records today.

-One is the span, a new record.

-The pinky to the thumb.

-And also the classic wrist to tip.

-We already know that Sultan has

-the biggest hand in one direction.

-How big is he the other way

-and has he got any bigger?

-He has a few inches on me!

-I can feel you straining. That's it.

-Exactly one foot, twelve inches.

-It's a one-foot hand.

-Congratulations.

-Sultan is the first person

-to be measured...

-..by the Guinness World Records

-in this category.

-There's no record to beat.

-It's a new Guinness World Record.

-Well done.

-Sultan now has the record

-for the longest and widest hands.

-And a half, 29cms.

-It's a wee bit bigger actually.

-You were 27.5 before.

-Now you're 29. Bigger.

-Craig has also discovered

-that Sultan's still growing.

-This is not good news

-and the disappointment is evident.

-Sultan's hands have grown an inch

-in nine months.

-The signs all point

-to one conclusion.

-The tumour is still there...

-..forcing the body

-to produce excess hormones.

-After receiving the bad news

-back in 2010...

-..Sultan received

-some unexpected luck.

-A specialist in America heard

-about him and offered to help him.

-I wonder if this assistance

-will stop Sultan growing?

-In 2010, Sultan visited

-the Virginia Medical Hospital...

-..for an MRI scan on his brain.

-I've reviewed Mr Kosen's history

-and notes...

-..from his previous physicians.

-I'm very concerned about him.

-Although he's had

-excellent treatments...

-..he still has high hormone levels

-which can damage his entire body.

-At the time,

-this was bad news for Sultan.

-The tumours are often large

-and they invade areas...

-..that the surgeon cannot go into.

-Sultan's been fortunate

-to have this examination...

-..through the kindness

-of the hospital.

-The facilities in America

-are far better than those in Turkey.

-Right now, we're doing imaging

-of the entire brain...

-..and I'm making sure first off

-that he's holding still enough.

-We're setting up select slices

-going through the pituitary gland.

-The scanner is too small for Sultan.

-He's having trouble staying still.

-Make sure he's OK.

-He's moving his legs around.

-Talk right into the speaker

-and make sure he's OK.

-The medical staff notice

-that Sultan is irritable.

-The back is getting a little numb.

-Continue?

-Continue?

-

-He said he's going to hold on.

-Sultan was very uncomfortable

-inside the scanner.

-To help him, they needed a detailed

-picture of his condition.

-Nobody knows...

-..how much he has suffered.

-During his life...

-..he's gone through this

-painful process time after time.

-What about the scan results?

-Dr Sheehan explains.

-I believe the tumour on the left

-is fairly invasive...

-..to both the left

-and the right cavernous sinus.

-After discovering that some

-of the tumour remains...

-..the hospital offered Sultan

-an operation free of charge.

-Sultan soon returned to America

-for gamma knife surgery.

-I would treat

-the entire pituitary region.

-That's Sultan's story so far, up

-to his treatment at the end of 2010.

-How is he now? Is he healthier?

-Did he find a wife?

-The most important question -

-is he still growing?

-Was the treatment in America

-a success?

-Well, good news. Sultan emailed me.

-I'm going to meet him in Turkey.

-I'm packing my bags.

-I'm catching a plane to Turkey.

-In the next programme, I arrive

-in Turkey to meet the man himself.

-I've never looked up

-to anyone taller than me.

-It'll be a new experience

-and I'm looking forward to it.

-We're heading south to the

-Turkish, Syrian and Iraqi coastline.

-I'm rather nervous.

-It's a dangerous place to visit.

-I don't know what to expect.

-We're 30 minutes away

-from Sultan's village.

-The man himself.

-I'm looking forward to meeting him.

-It's going to be an exciting day.

-S4C Subtitles by Adnod Cyf.

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