Gogea Mitu

When I first saw the cover of this March 1935 issue of the Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung, I thought the photo must be fake. But no, it's real. It shows 20-year-old Gogea Mitu, a boxer and the tallest Romanian in history. From wikipedia:

Mitu became world famous because of his enormous stature, at the age of 20 he was 2.42 metres (7.9 ft) tall, had a weight of 183 kilograms (400 lb) and had a foot size of 38 centimetres (15 in). Because of these characteristics he was very sought after by doctors and scientists who wanted to know the reason for his gigantism and by people who wanted to profit from his stature.

Mitu only lived to be 22, dying of tuberculosis in 1936. In the picture, it looks like he's wearing Converse sneakers. Did they come in his size, or were they custom-made for him?

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Posted By: Alex - Mon Jun 24, 2013
Category: Human Marvels | 1930s

Comments

Too bad for Mitu. Tuberculosis was a common ailment during that time and treatment was primitive - mom's father died of it in 1938. I wonder how Mitu would fared during Romania's alliance with the Axis powers. Would he have gone to the Eastern Front?

Posted by KDP on 06/24/13 at 12:41 PM

How could you possibly box against this guy, or was this before the rule about not hitting below the belt?

Posted by Phideaux on 06/24/13 at 07:54 PM

Apparently one of his two defeats came at the hands of world champ Primo Carnera, who was "only" 6'6". Heavyweight boxing is for dwarves these days.

Posted by Harvey on 06/24/13 at 10:49 PM

Wow! Today he'd have come over here and made millions playing basketball. Also, those are some very short shorts he is wearing!

Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 06/25/13 at 11:22 AM

Ummmm Patty ... You know where the size really matters ?!!! :red: :roll:

Posted by BrokeDad in Midwest US on 06/25/13 at 05:07 PM

I'm sure she does - look at the size of those hands!

Posted by TheCannyScot in Atlanta, GA on 06/27/13 at 03:42 PM

This is the first time I've ever thought one of those might be too big...and slightly scary!

Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 06/27/13 at 08:04 PM

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