The world’s new smallest man

The son of a Nepalese fruit seller has been declared the shortest man in the world, by Guinness World Records officials. 18 year old Kahagendra Thapa Magar is just 64cm (26.4in tall.

“We are very proud of our son,” said his father, Rup Bahadur Thapa Magar. “Our dreams have finally come true.”

Magar’s family has long campaigned for Guinness World Records officials to formalise his position but the organisation insisted on waiting until the  teenager reached the age of 18.

The new record holder greeted journalists at the family home in the town of Pokhara by jumping on a table, making tea for visitors and dancing to the sound of a toy drum.

Magar, who weighs 6.5kg (12lb 5oz), was tiny even at birth, weighing just 600g (1.3lb).

Local doctors believe he has a form of primordial dwarfism, an umbrella term for rare conditions affecting only hundreds of people globally.

Magar’s doctor for the past five years said he had the body of a three-year-old. “His body structure is like that of a small child and he also thinks and behaves in that manner.”