Guinness World Records deactivates ‘Cook-a-Thon’ category as Ghanaian Chef forges certificate

• A Ghanaian chef has fabricated the Guinness World Record certificate posing as the winner for the longest cooking marathon by an individual.
• The chef, Ebenezer Smith, popularly known as Chef Smith, has been arrested and detained over it.
• Shortly after, the GWR site allegedly deactivated the cook-a-thon category.

Guinness World Records has reportedly deactivated “cook-a-thon” category after a Ghanaian chef, Ebenezer Smith forged his certificate.

The chef had taken to Facebook to falsely claim to have set a new record for the longest cooking marathon and presented a fake certificate.

Guinness World Records confirmed that Smith’s certificate is not authentic and dismissed his claim.

The decision to deactivate the category comes amidst controversy surrounding Smith’s false claim.

Smith, who has since been arrested and detained at a press conference on Tuesday, announced himself on social media as the new world record holder for a purported 820-hour 25-minute cook-a-thon, from February 1, 2024 to March 6, 2024.The Public Relations Executive for Guinness World Record, Alina Polianskaya, refuted the claims made by Smith in an interview with the BBC, saying, “No, this is not true at all. He does not hold the GWR title, and that is not our certificate.”

The actual record holder is Alan Fisher from Ireland, who achieved a record time of 119 hours, 57 minutes, and 16 seconds in Japan in 2023, surpassing Nigerian chef, Hilda Baci.

Away from world records and certifications, Nigerian actress Iyabo Ojo has fired back at Kemi Olunloyo after the journalist made negative accusations about her.

Olunloyo echoed VDM’s claims about the actress, and she has now received a response.

On Instagram, Iyabo Ojo wrote a letter to Kemi Olunloyo’s children. In the message, she sympathised with the young men for their mother’s actions and pleaded with them to come together to support her.

According to Iyabo Ojo, despite Kemi Olunloyo’s sons being born to different fathers, they need to unite to care for their mum, especially the first son, who had already disowned her.

In another part of the letter, the Nollywood star expressed her deep pity for Kemi Olunloyo and vowed to keep her in her prayers. She also encouraged the journalist to reach out to her for financial assistance if she needed any.