Of all the stereotypes about Singaporeans, I’ve never quite subscribed to the notion that we are a boring bunch. But there are few more replete with creativity than the titleholders in the Singapore Book of Records (SBOR).
The non-profit organisation established in 2005 primarily compiles and adjudicates national records, as well as advises and promotes world records. It also functions as a platform to showcase “human excellence”, its website says.
That and, in my view, the classic Singaporean streak of competitiveness. Or “kiasu”-ism (being afraid to lose), depending on how you look at it.
As of August 2025, there are 291 pages of records listed on the website. This, according to SBOR president Ong Eng Huat, is a fraction of the total number of records, which comes to “over 6,000”.
Many of these records, along with aspiring record achievers across Singapore, would put those of us who exercise our free will in mundane ways to shame.
You may never guess this record that was set on Sep 14, 2024. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
Take the 208 residents from the Buona Vista constituency, who just last year donned headbands with rabbit ears and ate mooncakes together in their community club.
The grassroots activity on Sep 14, 2024, drew inspiration from ancient Chinese mythology, in which the Jade Rabbit is believed to be the immortal companion of moon goddess Chang’e.
For their wildly innovative roleplay, they set a record for – no kidding – the “most number of people wearing rabbit ears”.
In another productive use of a weekend, 71 men and women came together on Apr 19 this year to exfoliate their skin in the same room. Led by the founder of a local beauty brand Alluora, they armed themselves with the company’s new product: Exfoliate Sheets.
Their synchronised scrubbing set a record for the “most number of people doing exfoliation together”.
The record for “most number of people doing exfoliation together” was set on Apr 19, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
And as memorable team bonding activities go, the Ministry of Defence’s Central Manpower Base set a high bar on Jun 20. A total of 30 staff members walked 16.3km from their old office at Depot Road to the new building at Hillview Link.
Calories were burnt, bonds were strengthened and a record for the “longest office relocation walk” was set.
Since SBOR’s inception two decades ago, it has been inundated with countless similar peculiar and perplexing feats. And responses from anyone just discovering its existence can perhaps be summarised in a single word: Why?
The non-profit was officially registered in 2004 by Ong, a Singaporean, and Australian couple John and Helen Taylor, who were working in Singapore then. But it only became “more properly organised” in 2005, Ong said.
Since the Taylors, who later also founded the Australian Book of Records, returned to Australia in 2006, Ong has helmed the local organisation.
Back then, he also ran a small publishing firm and offered to produce SBOR’s namesake book. An online copy – all 238 pages of unimaginable records – can be found on its website today.
Despite the drizzle, a record for “longest office relocation walk” was set by one enthusiastic company on Jun 20, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
According to its website, SBOR was formed “in response to widespread voices for a national body to administer and make local record breaking possible”.
“During that time, it looked strange that there were so many national books of records around, like in Malaysia, Indonesia, India and Vietnam, but not one in Singapore,” 67-year-old Ong shared over email.
“It was even stranger that prior to SBOR, Singaporeans could apply for a world record but not a local record.”
Additionally, the news usually featured people who were “successful in business, academic studies, sports” and other conventional fields, he pointed out.
SBOR provided a platform where people could highlight “new and unique” abilities, such as “extraordinary perseverance, skills or collections”.
Over the decades, at least one skill has stayed constant: Extraordinary imagination.
With presumably myriad outlandish records constantly proposed (and rejected), SBOR has four main criteria that it adheres to.
First, the record must be quantifiable. SBOR turned down a restaurant who wanted to hold the title for “best chilli crab”, recalled Ong.
Second, the record must be safe and “not potentially hazardous”.
Third, the record should be “breakable in the foreseeable future”.
For example, Ong shared, SBOR wouldn’t accept “largest SG60 logo made of cards” as nobody would want to put up an SG60 logo next year, but it might propose “largest logo made of cards on a banner” as an alternative.
Fourth, the record must “arouse some public interest”, and cannot be seen as “trivial”.
The Punggol Link Residents’ Network set a record for the “largest logo made of handmade and drawn badges” on Aug 16, 2025. (Photo: Punggol Link RN)
No registration fee is needed to sign up for a record attempt. But SBOR charges an adjudication fee, regardless of whether the record is awarded eventually, depending on the number of hours and officials it needs to send down for the event, said Ong.
It usually insists on having its adjudicators observe the occasion in person, rather than just via photos and videos, to prevent the overly “kiasu” from falsifying their attempt. If records are legitimate, the process is straightforward.
Only in “a few rare cases” has the organisation taken a vote among its adjudicators, he added, without elaborating on these cases.
This year, Ong received an overwhelming number of record enquiries during the National Day season, with many determined to make a mark during SG60.
Some of these record-breaking attempts were, understandably, open to media coverage.
Companies tend to have “specific commercial objectives to do a record”, such as when they’re launching a product, announcing a breakthrough or engaging in corporate social responsibility, and want to get “more media exposure”, said Ong.
But this doesn’t detract from the good-natured silliness and fun in many of these records.
Records for the largest gathering of corgis and golden retrievers were set during the Good Pet Fair on Aug 9, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Sports Hub)
On Aug 9, for example, around 700 dog owners helped clinch two records during the Good Pet Fair held at the National Stadium's Promenade. The first was a new entry for the “largest gathering of corgis”, with 170 corgis in attendance.
The second saw 145 golden retrievers break the previous record for “largest gathering of golden retrievers”.
And on Aug 16, the Punggol Link Residents’ Network set a record for the “largest logo made of handmade and drawn badges”. Measuring 1.4m by 1.4m, the mosaic comprised 525 hand-decorated tiles.
Uniquely Singaporean records have always been a mainstay, Ong noted.
SBOR has received suggestions for “lots of creative and weird ways of making the Singapore flag”, for instance.
There are also records featuring local food, including chilli crab, durian and rojak. On Jul 26, for example, 60 people attempted to set a record at a biryani festival organised by catering company Shaabaz Kitchen at the Singapore Expo.
After half an hour, participants finished 52kg of the dish – and achieved the national record for “largest amount of biryani eaten by 60 people”.
But aside from a spot in SBOR and boasting rights (at least until the record is broken by another), many participants eventually come to realise the point is less about setting a record or surpassing a previous one, and more about what they learn from genuinely enjoying low-stakes competition.
60 people setting the national record for “largest amount of biryani eaten by 60 people” on Jul 26, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
“Singaporeans are generally competitive, and with SBOR, we enable them to compete with recognition for their successes. Lots of record organisers have told us that these are great learning experiences and fun too,” Ong said.
For personal records, it’s usually about these individuals “wanting to test or stretch their limits”, he added.
“Schools, companies and community centres organise records to add colour to their events, for team building and group interactions. Many schools leave such activities to their students to build their leadership and confidence.”
Ong referenced a 2017 article in the Ministry of Education’s online publication School Bag about Fajar Secondary School’s physical education teacher Tan Sok Eng, who led the school to break 41 local records and one Guinness World Record from 2009 to 2017.
That world record was for the most people standing on one leg for two minutes, and involved more than 900 members from the school community.
Tan pointed out in the article that the records were but a means to an end – helping students understand that achievement comes from “steely determination, collaboration, compassion and sheer hard work”.
So the concerted efforts to quantify seemingly inconsequential feats – from “largest curry puff” to “most number of people playing LED clappers together” (yes, really) – may appear to some like a questionable waste of time.
But if these records become an enjoyable and even enriching way to reframe what many of us have only known as stressful Singaporean competition, then perhaps the correct question should be: Why not?
Continue reading...
The non-profit organisation established in 2005 primarily compiles and adjudicates national records, as well as advises and promotes world records. It also functions as a platform to showcase “human excellence”, its website says.
That and, in my view, the classic Singaporean streak of competitiveness. Or “kiasu”-ism (being afraid to lose), depending on how you look at it.
As of August 2025, there are 291 pages of records listed on the website. This, according to SBOR president Ong Eng Huat, is a fraction of the total number of records, which comes to “over 6,000”.
Many of these records, along with aspiring record achievers across Singapore, would put those of us who exercise our free will in mundane ways to shame.
You may never guess this record that was set on Sep 14, 2024. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
Take the 208 residents from the Buona Vista constituency, who just last year donned headbands with rabbit ears and ate mooncakes together in their community club.
The grassroots activity on Sep 14, 2024, drew inspiration from ancient Chinese mythology, in which the Jade Rabbit is believed to be the immortal companion of moon goddess Chang’e.
For their wildly innovative roleplay, they set a record for – no kidding – the “most number of people wearing rabbit ears”.
In another productive use of a weekend, 71 men and women came together on Apr 19 this year to exfoliate their skin in the same room. Led by the founder of a local beauty brand Alluora, they armed themselves with the company’s new product: Exfoliate Sheets.
Their synchronised scrubbing set a record for the “most number of people doing exfoliation together”.
The record for “most number of people doing exfoliation together” was set on Apr 19, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
And as memorable team bonding activities go, the Ministry of Defence’s Central Manpower Base set a high bar on Jun 20. A total of 30 staff members walked 16.3km from their old office at Depot Road to the new building at Hillview Link.
Calories were burnt, bonds were strengthened and a record for the “longest office relocation walk” was set.
Since SBOR’s inception two decades ago, it has been inundated with countless similar peculiar and perplexing feats. And responses from anyone just discovering its existence can perhaps be summarised in a single word: Why?
CREATING THE SINGAPORE BOOK OF RECORDS
The non-profit was officially registered in 2004 by Ong, a Singaporean, and Australian couple John and Helen Taylor, who were working in Singapore then. But it only became “more properly organised” in 2005, Ong said.
Since the Taylors, who later also founded the Australian Book of Records, returned to Australia in 2006, Ong has helmed the local organisation.
Back then, he also ran a small publishing firm and offered to produce SBOR’s namesake book. An online copy – all 238 pages of unimaginable records – can be found on its website today.
Despite the drizzle, a record for “longest office relocation walk” was set by one enthusiastic company on Jun 20, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
According to its website, SBOR was formed “in response to widespread voices for a national body to administer and make local record breaking possible”.
“During that time, it looked strange that there were so many national books of records around, like in Malaysia, Indonesia, India and Vietnam, but not one in Singapore,” 67-year-old Ong shared over email.
“It was even stranger that prior to SBOR, Singaporeans could apply for a world record but not a local record.”
Additionally, the news usually featured people who were “successful in business, academic studies, sports” and other conventional fields, he pointed out.
SBOR provided a platform where people could highlight “new and unique” abilities, such as “extraordinary perseverance, skills or collections”.
CRITERIA FOR RECORDS
Over the decades, at least one skill has stayed constant: Extraordinary imagination.
With presumably myriad outlandish records constantly proposed (and rejected), SBOR has four main criteria that it adheres to.
First, the record must be quantifiable. SBOR turned down a restaurant who wanted to hold the title for “best chilli crab”, recalled Ong.
Second, the record must be safe and “not potentially hazardous”.
Third, the record should be “breakable in the foreseeable future”.
For example, Ong shared, SBOR wouldn’t accept “largest SG60 logo made of cards” as nobody would want to put up an SG60 logo next year, but it might propose “largest logo made of cards on a banner” as an alternative.
Fourth, the record must “arouse some public interest”, and cannot be seen as “trivial”.
The Punggol Link Residents’ Network set a record for the “largest logo made of handmade and drawn badges” on Aug 16, 2025. (Photo: Punggol Link RN)
No registration fee is needed to sign up for a record attempt. But SBOR charges an adjudication fee, regardless of whether the record is awarded eventually, depending on the number of hours and officials it needs to send down for the event, said Ong.
It usually insists on having its adjudicators observe the occasion in person, rather than just via photos and videos, to prevent the overly “kiasu” from falsifying their attempt. If records are legitimate, the process is straightforward.
Only in “a few rare cases” has the organisation taken a vote among its adjudicators, he added, without elaborating on these cases.
FROM BADGES TO BIRYANI
This year, Ong received an overwhelming number of record enquiries during the National Day season, with many determined to make a mark during SG60.
Some of these record-breaking attempts were, understandably, open to media coverage.
Companies tend to have “specific commercial objectives to do a record”, such as when they’re launching a product, announcing a breakthrough or engaging in corporate social responsibility, and want to get “more media exposure”, said Ong.
But this doesn’t detract from the good-natured silliness and fun in many of these records.
Records for the largest gathering of corgis and golden retrievers were set during the Good Pet Fair on Aug 9, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Sports Hub)
On Aug 9, for example, around 700 dog owners helped clinch two records during the Good Pet Fair held at the National Stadium's Promenade. The first was a new entry for the “largest gathering of corgis”, with 170 corgis in attendance.
The second saw 145 golden retrievers break the previous record for “largest gathering of golden retrievers”.
And on Aug 16, the Punggol Link Residents’ Network set a record for the “largest logo made of handmade and drawn badges”. Measuring 1.4m by 1.4m, the mosaic comprised 525 hand-decorated tiles.
Uniquely Singaporean records have always been a mainstay, Ong noted.
SBOR has received suggestions for “lots of creative and weird ways of making the Singapore flag”, for instance.
There are also records featuring local food, including chilli crab, durian and rojak. On Jul 26, for example, 60 people attempted to set a record at a biryani festival organised by catering company Shaabaz Kitchen at the Singapore Expo.
After half an hour, participants finished 52kg of the dish – and achieved the national record for “largest amount of biryani eaten by 60 people”.
MORE THAN WINNING, A LEARNING EXPERIENCE
But aside from a spot in SBOR and boasting rights (at least until the record is broken by another), many participants eventually come to realise the point is less about setting a record or surpassing a previous one, and more about what they learn from genuinely enjoying low-stakes competition.
60 people setting the national record for “largest amount of biryani eaten by 60 people” on Jul 26, 2025. (Photo: Singapore Book of Records)
“Singaporeans are generally competitive, and with SBOR, we enable them to compete with recognition for their successes. Lots of record organisers have told us that these are great learning experiences and fun too,” Ong said.
For personal records, it’s usually about these individuals “wanting to test or stretch their limits”, he added.
“Schools, companies and community centres organise records to add colour to their events, for team building and group interactions. Many schools leave such activities to their students to build their leadership and confidence.”
Ong referenced a 2017 article in the Ministry of Education’s online publication School Bag about Fajar Secondary School’s physical education teacher Tan Sok Eng, who led the school to break 41 local records and one Guinness World Record from 2009 to 2017.
That world record was for the most people standing on one leg for two minutes, and involved more than 900 members from the school community.
Tan pointed out in the article that the records were but a means to an end – helping students understand that achievement comes from “steely determination, collaboration, compassion and sheer hard work”.
So the concerted efforts to quantify seemingly inconsequential feats – from “largest curry puff” to “most number of people playing LED clappers together” (yes, really) – may appear to some like a questionable waste of time.
But if these records become an enjoyable and even enriching way to reframe what many of us have only known as stressful Singaporean competition, then perhaps the correct question should be: Why not?
Continue reading...