Rhona hula-hoops her way to a world record

A STUDENT from Culcheth has become a world record holder for hula-hooping at the highest altitude ever.
Rhona Mackay,  set the record on a 6,057m volcano called Chachani near Arequipa – Peru’s second largest city.
The 21-year-old joined a group of 18 Peruvian and international charity workers from a Peruvian organisation called Helping Overcome Obstacles Peru (HOOP) for the record attempt.
As well as becoming world record holders, the team raised more than $11,000 for the charity, which works with children and their families in a disadvantaged community in the city of Arequipa.
The team climbed five hours nthrough the night to reach the summit at 7am
Of the 18 people in the team, 14 made it to the summit to hula-hoop their way into the record books – including Rhona.
She said: “ At one point I wasn’t sure if I would make it. Many of us were suffering from the effects of altitude – headaches, nausea, shortness of breath, and dizziness.
“But we all tried to encourage each other to keep going. It was an amazing feeling when we made it to the top. The conditions for hula-hooping were perfect – clear skies and almost no wind. We hula-hooped for at least 30 seconds to secure the record and I still really can’t believe we did it!”
The team had an initial fundraising goal of $10,000, but surpassed the goal three weeks before the world record attempt.
Tom Hornbrook, Director of Communications and Development at HOOP, said: “Climbing Chachani was a huge physical and mental challenge for the team, and I was very impressed by everyone’s strength and commitment. It was amazing to see the generosity of people around the world in supporting this great achievement. With their help, we surpassed our ambitious fundraising goal, with all the money raised helping us have a real impact on the lives of children and their families in the community.”
You can still help support the fundraising campaign at www.hoopperu.org/hulahoop, with 100 per cent of funds helping sustain HOOP.
The money raised by the campaign will be spent on school rental, schoolbooks and supplies, teacher training, a new maths program, and a new social work program. The social work program is a new service being offered by HOOP to improve the wellbeing of families in the community.
The world record attempt is currently going through the officiating process with Guinness World Records. More information and regular updates on the world record attempt are available at www.hoopperu.org.