Sultan Kosen, an 8’1” tall Turk is officially named by the Guinness World Records as the tallest man on the planet. His Ukrainian rival, Leonid Stadnyk, reportedly measured 8 feet 5.5 inches (2.57 meters). However, he was stripped of his title because he declined to have his height measured. According to Guinness, there are only 10 confirmed cases in which humans have grown past the eight foot (2.44 meter) mark. This condition is known as pituitary gigantism.