Following several counts and recounts, the final assessment by the Guinness Book of Records is in and the CANSA Shavathon - held on 2 and 3 April - has successfully broken the record for the most heads shaved or sprayed in a 24-hour period.
The event, which raised R4.8 million for the Cancer Association of SA, broke the official record comfortably, with verified photographs of over 25 000 participants.
"The response was overwhelming, and it`s fantastic that we`ve broken the world record," says Michelle Fagan, spokesman for the Shavathon.
"The reason for the lengthy counting process was due to the fact that every single participant`s before and after photograph had to be found, matched, counted and verified."
ITWeb took up the CANSA challenge, with three of its journalists either getting shaved or sprayed. Other members of the IT press also did their bit and put their money where their hair used to be.
According to Fagan, Australia`s claim that it held the record of 55 000 was found to be invalid, as a spokesman for the Guinness Book of Records said that there was never an official submission from the Australian organisers and therefore the claim was not upheld.
The previous record, according to the Guinness Book of Records, was 1 786 people who had their heads shaved across Australia between 16 and 17 April 1999, in an event staged to support the Leukaemia Foundation of Australia and raised AU$1 million for leukaemia research.
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