Brazil in Guinness World Records 2005

Entries in the Guinness World Records 2005 may be ”weird, wonderful and often totally mind-boggling,” says the website of the British tabloid The Daily Mirror. A couple of dozen come from Brazil. With no further ado, here they are.

The Biggest Dance Festival

Joinville, Santa Catarina - The Joinville Dance Festival in Santa Catarina is the biggest in the world. Produced for the first time in 1983, it lasts at least 10 days and includes the participation of 4,500 Brazilian and foreign dancers from 140 professional and amateur troupes. Average annual attendance is 200,000. Click here for more information about the festival.

The Biggest Street Carnival

Salvador, Bahia - The Salvador Carnival in Bahia attracts two million people a year, including 800,000 tourists. It generates US$254 million of business. Salvador’s “Carnaval” lasts six days, takes place along 26 kilometers of public thoroughfares. It includes the participation of 100 parade groups called “blocos” and sundry sound trucks called “trios elétricos.” Read more about Salvador’s Carnaval.

The Most Important Producer of Telenovelas

Brazil, Mexico and Puerto Rico top the telenovela market with more than 100 episodes that are televised principally in Latin America, Italy and Portugal. Though the format originated in Mexico and Cuba in the 1950s, Brazil’s Rede Globo is by far the world’s richest and most prolific producer. Telenovelas dominate its nightly line-up starting at 6 p.m.

The Heaviest Oil Drilling Platform

Campos, Rio de Janeiro - The heaviest oil-drilling platform is the Pampo platform in the Campos Bay off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state. Built by Petrobrás, it has been in operation since the 1970s. Weighing 24,000 tons, it covers an area of 3,900 square meters, produces 33,000 barrels a day, and operates at 115 meters above sea level.

The Biggest Collection of Cachaça Bottles

Recife, Pernambuco - José Moisés de Moura of Pernambuco has collected 6,850 different bottles of cachaça since 1986. Read more about cachaça.

The Biggest Bag of Popcorn

Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul - On September 11, 2003, BR Turbo filled a bag of popcorn measuring 24.92 square meters in the Mercado Público in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul. It took five hours and 59 minutes to fill the bag.

The Biggest Polished Emerald

Pindobaçu, Bahia - The biggest emerald ever polished weighed in at 86,136 carats. The natural beryl was found in the Carnaíba mine at Pindobaçu, Bahia, in 1974. Polished by Richard Chan in Hong Kong, its value was assessed at US$512,000.


The First Feature Length Animated Film Generated Entirely by Computer

“Cassiopéia” (Brazil, 1996) was the first feature-length film generated entirely by computer, including the modeling of the characters. Directed by Clóvis Vieira, it had a budget of $1.5 million.

Record Number of Soccer World Cup Victories

The first World Cup tournament was first organized by the FIFA, the international soccer federation, in 1930 in Montevideo, Uruguay. Since then it has been held ever four years. Brazil has won five times: in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002.

Biggest Group Parachute Jump in Peacetime

Rio de Janeiro - Including civilians and soldiers, 588 parachutists from five nations jumped from seven airplanes at an altitude of 3,660 meters above the Santa Cruz Air Force Base in Rio de Janeiro on April 18, 2000.

The Biggest Wedding Ceremony in a Prison

São Paulo - In a joint ceremony, some 120 inmates of the (now demolished) Carandiru prison in São Paulo married their brides on April 18, 2000. Order the DVD of Carandiru, a feature film by director Hector Babenco set in the prison.

The Longest Career for a Stadium Announcer

Rio de Janeiro - Walter Miceli has been the PA announcer at São Januário stadium, home of the Vasco club in Rio de Janeiro, since February 12, 1947.

The Most Poisonous Spider

The South American spiders of the genus Phoneutria, especially the Phoneutria fera from Brazil, have the most effective neurotoxic venom of any living species. It is so potent that just 0.006 milligrams are enough to kill a mouse. The Phoneutria genus is usually of a dark color and has a tentacle spread of about 17 centimeters. These large and very aggressive creatures often enter homes and hide among clothes and shoes. When disturbed, they furiously bite several times. Hundreds of accidents with this species are reported annually.

The Shortest Couple

Curitiba, Paraná - Douglas Maistre Breger da Silva (September 21, 1969) and Cláudia Pereira Rocha (September 6, 1972) were 90 centimeters and 93 centimeters tall, respectively, when they got married in Curitiba on October 27, 1998.

The Longest Undefeated Streak in Kumite Karate

On March 22, 1995, Francisco Alves Filho defeated 100 opponents in a row in a freestyle sparring session called Kumite that lasted three hours and eight minutes. He won 26 bouts by “ippon” (maximum number of points), 50 by decision, tied 24 and lost none. World championships, for both women and men, were launched in 1997 and take place every two years. Brazil took both the women’s and men’s titles in 1997 and 1999.

The Biggest Seaside Garden

Santos, São Paulo - The beaches of Santos, in São Paulo state, are bordered by a 5.3-kilometer long garden. The total area of this greenbelt, broken by six channels, is 218,000 square meters.

The Tallest Artificial Christmas Tree

Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul - The tallest Christmas tree covered with artificial leaves made of PVC was 52 meters high. The “Peace Tree” was built by the Sonae Group and stood in the Moinhos de Vento Park in Porto Alegre from December 1, 2001 to January 5, 2002.

The Biggest Floating Christmas Tree

Rio de Janeiro - The biggest floating Christmas tree is 76 meters high, with a diameter of 24 meters at its base. It is placed in the Rodrigo Freitas lake in Rio de Janeiro every year since Christmas of 1999.

The Widest Avenue

Brasília - The widest public thoroughfare in the world is the Eixo Monumental, which runs for 2.4 kilometers from the Praça Municipal to the Praças dos Três Poderes in Brasília. The six-lane avenue was inaugurated in April 1960 and is 250 metes wide.

posted by nscafuro @ 10:06 AM