KUALA LUMPUR: Former bodyguard Rathakrishnan Velu bested his own world record of pulling with his teeth two coaches and a carriage wagon weighing a total of 297.1 tons, and dedicated his feat to the people of Malaysia.
He did it over a distance of 2.8m at the Kuala Lumpur Railway Station.
In 2003, Rathakrishnan pulled coaches weighing 260.8 tons over a distance of 4.2m.
Rathakrishnan, who earned the nickname Raja Gigi for his prowess of pulling heavy objects with his teeth, has his name listed three times in the Malaysia Book of Records.
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With all his might: People watching by the side as Rathakrishnan (also inset) uses his teeth to pull the coaches in Kuala Lumpur yesterday. — Reuters |
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Dr Maximus Ongkili also witnessed the event.
Rathakrishnan made three attempts, with the first effort seeing him tug the trains for a distance of 2.8m to the excited cheers of the crowd. The next two tries yielded a distance of 0.73m and 2.4m respectively.
“This is to show my support and loyalty to Malaysia. The double celebration of our Golden Jubilee and Visit Malaysia 2007 is the ideal time to have this event,” he told reporters later.
The 42-year-old bachelor plans to try again at the end of the year, preferably to usher in 2008 with trains weighing about 390 tonnes.
KTM Bhd managing director Datuk Mohd Salleh Abdullah has promised to provide the venue and the trains.
Rathakrishnan quit his job as a personal bodyguard in 2003 to concentrate on his training.
