Man with 'world's longest hair', dies in Vietnam - PHOTO

Tran Van Hay is thought to have had hair up to 6.8 metres long, although it had never been officially measured for a record attempt. It stretched in a thick, matted cord around his body, resembling a massive furry boa constrictor.

The official world record for the longest hair is held by Xie Qiuping of China, whose hair was measured in 2004 at 5.6 metres long. If Hay's hair was as long as it is claimed to be - or even as long as the 6.2 metres is was reported to have been measured at in 2006 - it would have taken the record by a considerable distance.

79-year-old Hay, who lived in the Kien Giang province of southern Vietnam, worked as a herbalist and lived a simple life, according to reports.

However, his hair did cause him some difficulties, notably that he couldn't take a motorcycle taxi anywhere because he couldn't fit a helmet around his hair. He had been growing his hair for over fifty years, according to his wife Nguyen Thi Hoa, because he often felt sick after a haircut.

By day, Hay kept his hair - which weighed several kilograms - balanced precariously on his head, covered by a scarf.


/Metro.co.uk/

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