Irish balloon modeller Ryan Tracey has set a new Guinness World Record for the most balloon models made in one hour, breaking the previous record by more than 90 models.
At an event held in the Belfast CastleCourt shopping centre to raise awareness for NSPCC Northern Ireland’s Childhood Day, Ryan far exceeded his original target of 800 sculptures – which would have been 53 more than the previous record.
Ryan managed to twist an incredible 839 balloon dogs, swords and flowers before running out of balloons, with almost nine minutes still left on the clock.
“I feel completely and utterly exhausted,” Ryan told a local newspaper after the event. “It’s the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life…. There were plenty of times my arms were seized and my thumbs weren’t working and I just had to keep going.”
“I have been wanting to do this record since I started balloon modelling six years ago,” Ryan continued. “I have three World Records already, but that is the most challenging thing I’ve ever done, certainly in the context of balloon modelling. I knew when I had to dig in and it really helped that I was doing it for a fantastic cause.”
Ryan’s speedy balloon modelling talents have previously earned him a place in the semi-final of Britain’s Got Talent in 2017 and he has also appeared om a number of other television shows including Blue Peter and Gogglebox. He has also recently designed his own ‘science of balloons’ stage show.