The Guinness World Record (GWR) committee announced Tuesday that Nigerian chef Hilda Effiong Bassey, also known on social media as Hilda Baci, has been recognized as the new world record holder for the longest cooking marathon. The record was confirmed nearly a month later after the GWR reviewed footage from the four-day cookathon.
“I can now announce that Hilda Baci, with a time of 93 hours and 11 minutes, is the new holder for the Guinness World Records title of the longest cooking marathon,” an adjudicator merely known as Mark stated in a video uploaded Tuesday on the Guinness World Records official Twitter handle.
The 26-year-old worked in a makeshift kitchen for four days, beginning on Thursday, May 11, and ending on Monday, May 15, generating nearly 100 pots of food, according to GWR.
“When I found out, I cried, prayed, and screamed,” Chef Bassey told CNN after learning of her record-breaking feat.
“Then I called my mum and we cried some more. I am so happy. Everything and all the hard work was worth it. I said I wanted to be a record holder and now I am. This is for all my team members and all the hard work,” Chef Bassey added.
Chef Hilda Bassey cooked for 100 hours
Although Chef Bassey cooked for 100 hours, she was penalized by the world record committee for inaccuracy in her scheduled rest breaks.
“There was an error in calculating Hilda’s rest breaks, so we are unable to award the 100 hours claimed,” the assessor remarked.
The previous record holder was Indian chef Lata Tondon, who cooked for 87 hours and 45 minutes in 2019. Basey’s attempt made her a celebrity, and it was so popular that it crashed the GWR website for two days due to the enormous volume of traffic we received from her legion of loyal fans,” the organization said.
“I also want to thank Nigerians. They are so awesome. The support was so great. We did something amazing,” Chef Bassey said.