42,813 people in the national hockey stadium sang the national anthem together, smashing the previous best of 15,243 held by India.-Photo by AFP

LAHORE: Pakistan may not have brought home any medals from this summer's Olympics, but it can now lay claim to world records in chapati-making, plug-wiring and chessboard-arranging.

A weekend of bizarre record attempts in the eastern city of Lahore began on Saturday night when 42,813 people in the national hockey stadium sang the national anthem together, smashing the previous best of 15,243 held by India.

On Sunday, Mohammad Mansha went flat out to set a new record for making chapati breads – mixing, kneading, spinning and cooking three in three minutes and 14 seconds – while 12-year-old Mehek Gul took just 45 seconds to arrange the pieces on a chessboard using only one hand.

Neither of these feats had been attempted before. But Ahmed Amin Bodla beat a more established record when he landed 616 martial arts kicks on a punchbag in just three minutes, beating the previous best of 612 also set by a Pakistani.

The events were held as part of a week-long youth festival in the eastern city of Lahore with the watchful eye of Guinness World Records adjudicator Gareth Deaves ensuring fair play, manager Sher Ali told AFP.

While some people might prefer care over haste when it comes to electrics, Mohammad Nauman lit up the crowd in Lahore as he wired a household plug in a dazzling 35 seconds.

Elsewhere, Daniel Gill and Mohammad Rizwan set a new record for heading a football between them, managing 335 consecutive headers in three minutes 45 seconds.

But there was heartache for one contender, whose bid to claim the record for most t-shirts donned in three minutes was disallowed when officials ruled he had failed to smooth down all of the 59 shirts properly.

Opinion

Editorial

Wheat price crash
Updated 20 May, 2024

Wheat price crash

What the government has done to Punjab’s smallholder wheat growers by staying out of the market amid crashing prices is deplorable.
Afghan corruption
20 May, 2024

Afghan corruption

AMONGST the reasons that the Afghan Taliban marched into Kabul in August 2021 without any resistance to speak of ...
Volleyball triumph
20 May, 2024

Volleyball triumph

IN the last week, while Pakistan’s cricket team savoured a come-from-behind T20 series victory against Ireland,...
Border clashes
19 May, 2024

Border clashes

THE Pakistan-Afghanistan frontier has witnessed another series of flare-ups, this time in the Kurram tribal district...
Penalising the dutiful
19 May, 2024

Penalising the dutiful

DOES the government feel no remorse in burdening honest citizens with the cost of its own ineptitude? With the ...
Students in Kyrgyzstan
Updated 19 May, 2024

Students in Kyrgyzstan

The govt ought to take a direct approach comprising convincing communication with the students and Kyrgyz authorities.