Breaking even a single Guinness World Record is a dream for many people across the globe, while an Iranian rural young juggler claims he can break several different records!
Hassan Valipour is skilled at juggling a soccer ball with his feet for long hours, far distances and in various positions.
In an interview with the Persian ‘7Sobh’ (7am) daily, Hassan and his coach Akbar Seylani urged for official support to register Hassan’s records in the Guinness book.
The 25-year-old talented athlete who hails from a village in Robat-Karim county, Tehran, started playing futsal 8 years ago. Seylani, a futsal coach, said: “He was one of the best players in the region. Once to check his skill we asked him to juggle the ball. He passed the test so successfully that we decided to quit futsal and dedicate his time and energy specifically to this skill.”
Growing up in a deprived area, Hassan had no formal training in the field and learned it out of personal interest through perseverance and trial and error.
Hassan practices soccer juggling everyday in a small room, dubbed by his coach as ‘the vault’ for “the monotonous and intolerable sound of the ball he juggles around.” The longest duration for juggling the ball with one’s feet is 21 hours while Hassan can do the feat for 23 hours, two hours more than the world record.
Hassan’s record for the furthest distance while juggling a ball is 30 km as against 20 km for the world record. He can keep the ball in the air by bouncing it off his chest more skillfully than professional soccer players and even the Guinness record holder.
Simple Training
In a simple training session, which was filmed, Hassan juggled the ball with his chest 27 times while the Guinness record is 19. The famous Brazilian player Ronaldinho has done it 14 times.
The Guinness record for climbing the stairs while juggling a football is 89; Hassan has climbed the 1,860 steps of Tehran’s Milad Tower, the 6th largest tower in the world. The amazing show, however, briefly covered by state TV, has not convinced the officials to support him.
Seylani said he has met different authorities to persuade them to support this young talented athlete but to no avail. “The only answer I get is ‘we have plenty of such people in the country’ which is so annoying.”
Another outstanding feat of Hassan’s is juggling the ball with his feet on a moving truck, at a speed of 20 kph, for 13 hours. “I wonder if anyone in the world can maintain balance for such a long time in this situation,” said Seylani adding, “Doctors believe that his physical ability is extraordinary as the ordinary body cannot withstand such pressure.”
Hassan practiced hard to achieve this skill under medical supervision. All his stunts have been documented and “just need to be performed in the presence of Guinness officials.”
No Support
Seylani believes that sports like football or wrestling get the most attention leaving no space for individuals like Hassan. “In my visits to the sports organizations in Robat-Karim and Tehran, I insisted there are records registered in the world which an Iranian can break. This is an honor for the whole nation; however, it seems the word ‘support’ is not defined for them, as they say go at your own expenses’,” he lamented.
A simple coach, Seylani asserted that if he had the money, he would not seek official support; but to make the world proud of Iran and its talents, “we need to plead with them,” he said, adding: “Even at the moment I have to confess that his diet is not compatible with his heavy exercises.”
Nevertheless Hassan is persistent on his path saying, “I have a mission which is to hold my country’s flag high in the world; whoever can do so, no matter in which area, deserves support.”
