Over 64m in length and 43m wide (excluding the sleeves), the T-shirt is taller than the Statue of Liberty; two times taller than the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; big enough for 152 average-sized elephants to stand on the garment and the same mass as 8 full-grown male lions.
Made from more than 7000 running metres of fabric and home to some 6.5 million stitches, the hot pink T-shirt took a team of tailors and seamstresses three weeks of working round the clock to sew together. It is 10% larger than its nearest rival.
The undertaking was the brainchild of Vanish, a stain remover manufactured by Reckitt Benckiser, and was also used as a marketing tool when the company allowed a group of exuberant school learners to stain the garment. The shirt was then soaked in its solution and the enormous stain disappeared in front of onlookers.
"The brand wanted to do something great for South Africa; create excitement and build on the sense of optimism created by the World Cup. Everything about the record is South African, from the people involved, to the material and thread used," says Jiri Kulik, GM for Reckitt Benckiser SA.
It joins other South African world records set during 2010, including hosting the most successful World Cup Soccer tournament ever, the largest trumpet (vuvuzela) and biggest soccer ball.
