TRYING THEM ON: Sultan Kosen, the world’s tallest living man (251 centimetres), tries out a pair of new shoes in the shop.
By Florentine Dame
Georg Wessels has some rather oversized visitors; the three men have to duck to enter his German shoe-making shop.
They are all far more than 200 centimetres tall, making them some of the tallest men in the world.
They’ve come to the little town of Vreden to collect shoes which they ordered and were made by Wessels’ shop. Amid a frenzy of reporters and photographers watching, it’s easy to forget that the life of a giant is not always easy.
That includes buying shoes. “This is the first time I’m wearing shoes that don’t hurt,” says Abdramane Dembele. At 2.32 metres, the Ivory Coast man is the smallest of the three shoppers.
His friend and colleague, the Moroccan Brahim Takioullah, has also travelled with him here from Paris. According to the Guinness Book of Records, the Moroccan is the second tallest man in the world at 2.46 metres.
But record holder Sultan Kosen puts them both in the shade, at 2.51 metres.
They all suffer from a tumour on their pituitary glands, which means they keep growing unless it’s treated.
They attract attention wherever they go; they can’t fit into a normal aeroplane seat, or stand upright on a bus. Clothes have to be specially made for them. “Even houses are too small,” says Takioullah.
And they’ve all had to get used to the looks from strangers and the teasing that accompanies their great height. “I’ve only just accepted my life as a giant,” says 30-year-old Dembele.
He’s being treated in Europe for his condition and has found a job as an entertainer at an amusement park.
Despite hiding themselves away for years, neither Takioullah nor Kosen want to be without their extra inches now— as record holders, they are paid to make public appearances around the world. They have managers.
The shoes from Vreden, all in German size 60, should make walking a little easier for them.
Wessels, 63, and his family-run shop have been making shoes for giants for more than 30 years, sometimes for free if their customers can’t afford to pay for them.
To make the shoes, it’s important to know something about the illness from which the giants are suffering and its effects. Many have diabetes, meaning that any pressure sores on their feet can lead to lethal inflammation.
Kosen, who has been getting his shoes for years from Wessels, suffered long-term from ill-fitting shoes, says the shoemaker. “He was almost at the point where he’d have had to have half his foot amputated.”
The giant Turk loves coming to visit Wessels at his shop. “Georg’s like a father to me,” he says, patting him on the shoulder.
So what is the secret of making footwear for giants?
“The shoes have to be two things: soft for sensitive feet and sturdy and hard-wearing for heavy loads,” says Wessels.
The Vreden shoemaker has given away 500 pairs of shoes to needy giants over the past decades, and has made an internationally renowned name for himself in the process.
Wessels makes it clear he doesn’t help giants to profit off them. Instead, he’s made personal friendships with many of them over the years and has got to know the problems they face.
“They’re trapped in their bodies,” he says. Posing with them in his shop for reporters is their way of thanking him. “They’d probably rather hide away somewhere,” says Wessels, ruefully. -DPA
