Guinness World Records has finally broken its silence regarding Nigerian Chef, Damilola Adeparusi aka Chef Dammy’s 120-hour cook-a-thon.
A courageous lady, Chef Dammy, took up cooking in Oye-Ekiti on Friday, June 9, with the organisers saying she would cook for 120 hours.
On Wednesday morning, June 14, Chef Dammy reached her target of 120 hours, leaving many wondering if Guinness World Records would approve her feat.
Some Nigerians were asking if Chef Dammy followed the right procedure or if she actually wanted to break a world record.
To clear the air, Legit.ng sent a press enquiry to the Guinness World Records on Tuesday, June 13.
A response received from the body shows that Dammy may not have set out to break any record in the first place. She may just have been cooking for passion or to showcase her skills which many have attested to.
The platform wanted to know if the body is aware of the cookathon so as to clarify members of the public who were curious regarding Dammy’s efforts.
The body said: “We have not received an application for this attempt. Applications can be made via the Guinness World Records website for our records management team to review.”
Some Nigerians also raised eyebrows on whether Dammy was following the cooking rules.
On this, the body said anyone trying to break a record receives rules from the body once the application is accepted.
The body wrote: “Once an application is accepted, the record claimant receives a set of detailed guidelines specific to that record category that must be adhered to. “This also details a list of evidence that must be submitted for our team to verify the record.
Guinness World Records maintains a rigorous review process to maintain the integrity of each Guinness World Records title.”
While some have said Dammy had to wait one year before attempting to break Hilda’s record, the GWR said there is no waiting time before one can attempt to break an existing record.
The body said specifically: “There is no waiting time to attempt to break an existing record.”
In a tweet on its official account on June 7, shortly before the cookathon started, the organisers, The Spirit Word Mission, said: “Spirit Word is going for the world record by Friday, 09/05/2023. Save the date tweeps. We are coming!”
Also, in a video posted on Twitter by the Spirit Word Mission, Dammy was seen talking excitedly about the Guinness World Records.
Kindly listen to our chefs before the show begins! They are ready to give their all for the 120 hours marathon cooking. We need your support on this fam. We cannot do it alone!😍🔥#Spiritwordcookathon#June9th pic.twitter.com/pl15FTt7CD
— Spirit Word Global Mission (@SpiritWordGM) June 8, 2023
In a short interaction with Chuwuebuka Ezugha, the founder/chairman of Chukwuebuka Freestyle Entertainment and Academy and who has applied for 16 record attempts for talented footballers under his training. He confirmed what the Guinness World Record said regarding application before attempting to break a record.
He said: “It takes up to 12 weeks in each process and possibly five working days if you choose and pay for “Priority Application.” I applied for all 16 records by myself. Without receiving and following GWR attempt guidelines, the record won’t be approved.”
While it is now clear that the organisers of the cookathon may not have set out to break any record, the event was not a disaster.
Many Nigerians could argue that it was, in fact, a resounding success, with one of them even offering to give Dammy N500,000 and a cooking tour of the United States.
Apart from the support of Nigerians on social media, many prominent people, including Hilda Baci, released tweets encouraging her. She has become popular because of her efforts and courage.
Her cookathon also inspired other Nigerians to channel their energies towards positive things. One youth, Adebiyi Israel, said he applied to the Guinness World Record to break the record for the longest film-watching marathon. The application was approved.
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