A Frenchman who spent eight years building a 23-foot-tall replica of the Eiffel Tower out of matchsticks saw his dreams go up in smoke – because he used a brand that wasn't available in stores.
Richard Plaud claims he found out his dreams went up in flames when Guinness World Records announced its verdict without even viewing the replica.
And the ruling organization says the 706,900 sticks the 47-year-old used were not commercially available and had been altered beyond recognition from their original form – meaning they could not withstand his attempt.
Council member Mr. Plaud was outraged by the decision – he was appalled that his patriotic project had been able to cope with record-breaking bureaucracy.
“It’s disappointing, frustrating, incomprehensible and not very fair,” he told the Times.
Richard Plaud claims he only found out his dreams had been shattered when Guinness World Records announced its verdict without even inspecting the replica
And the ruling organization says the 706,900 sticks the 47-year-old used were not commercially available and had been altered beyond recognition from their original form – meaning they could not withstand his attempt
Council member Mr. Plaud was outraged by the decision – he was appalled that his patriotic project had been able to cope with record-breaking bureaucracy
Mr. Plaud made 402 panels from the matches, which he then installed into the huge structure
He had hoped Guinness would take pity on him, but he was devastated when they refused. “It is part of the dream that has escaped,” he told the broadsheet.
In an angry post on social media, he added: “Tell me that 706,900 sticks stuck individually are not matches.”
“My match tower is still standing and will be 7.19 meters high for a long time to come.”
Mr. Plaud, who works in the art and bridges department of the Charent-Maritime department in southwestern France, finally completed his project on December 27, the 100th anniversary of the death of the original tower engineer.
He created 402 panels from the matches, which he then incorporated into the huge structure.
The amazing tower would have eclipsed the current record for the tallest matchstick sculpture of all time, held by Lebanese craftsman Toufic Daher, who created a 6.53-meter-tall model of the Eiffel Tower in 2009.
Mr Plaud, who has enjoyed making models since he was eight, had originally bought matches from supermarkets to build the model.
But his painstaking plans to win the Guinness World Record collapsed when he decided the process was too “demanding” – and instead persuaded French matchmaker Flam'Up to supply him with huge boxes of 190,000 headless matches.
Mr. Plaud, who works in the art and bridges department of the Charent-Maritime department in southwestern France, finally completed his project on December 27, the 100th anniversary of the death of the tower's original engineer (pictured).
Mr Plaud, who has enjoyed making models since he was eight, had originally bought matches from supermarkets to build the model
But his arduous plans to win the Guinness World Record fell through when he decided the process was too “demanding”.
The model maker, who also cut off the heads of the matches before they were delivered to him in bulk, was told that the heads had to be scraped off for his attempt to be valid.
He encountered technical difficulties along the way, telling Le Parisien that he had to carry out some “quite complex calculations” to ensure that the tower's legs would support his weight.
He estimated he had put 4,200 hours of his time into the project since it began in December 2015.
Speaking to a local television station ahead of his record attempt, Mr Plaud's wife Sandra spoke of her hope that he would finally succeed after more than 20 years of dreaming.
“This way I can get my living room back,” she laughed.