'The tallest woman in the world' Xiao Mo, nicknamed 'The Giant', dies at the age of 23 'of the cold' after rising to fame as a Chinese TikTok star
A young woman known for her extreme height has died under unusual circumstances at the age of 23.
Online star Xiao Mo from Shaoyang, China was 2.5 meters tall and had more than 152,000 followers on video social media platform Douyin.
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She reportedly died on January 15 after succumbing to complications due to a cold she recently contracted.
Mo was popular on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTokfor her videos documenting her daily life, and was dubbed “Hunan's No. 1 Giantess,” local media reported.
Many were intrigued by her height as she was four inches taller than her N.B.A star Yao Ming.
She is said to have had a difficult upbringing, having been abandoned by her mother and raised by her grandparents.
According to Chinese media, Mo suffered from a number of underlying problems health conditions, such as heart and vision problems, that were related to her extreme height.
She was reportedly cremated – and it is believed her father, with whom she did not have a good relationship, has yet to pick her up ash from the crematorium.
Her shocking death devastated her tens of thousands of followers.
A Douyin user said online: “I didn't expect to meet you like this.”
Another said: “Have a good trip Xiao Mo. I hope you will be a healthy girl with loving parents in you next one to live.”
Someone else commented: “She and my sister were classmates in primary school, and later in high school she dropped out of college because she was too tall and in poor health.
“My sister said she was a very good person, always helped her classmates and was very easy-going.”
Although some thought Mo was the tallest woman in the world, the highest is in fact Rumeysa Gelgi by Turkey.
Rumeysa became the world's tallest woman when she turned 18 and stands 7 feet tall, according to Guinness World records.
The 25-year-old was born with the rare Weaver Syndrome, a genetic condition that causes overgrowth of bones, which is the reason for her height and a number of medical problems she suffers from, including scoliosis.
Her condition also comes with some physical challenges, which Rumeysa discovered when she recently took her very first flight from Turkey to California.
Due to her medical problems, she cannot sit comfortably for more than two hours at a time, so she had to lie on a stretcher for the entire 13-hour flight to San Francisco, she told The US Sun.
To make room for a platform for the stretcher, Turkish Airlines had to close off six seats.
Rumeysa explained: “For me, lying down was the only possible option and also the safest option.
“This was not an easy process. I mean, this is not what they do often. This option is only offered by a few airlines in the world, and luckily Turkish Airlines was one of them.”
She said passengers were generally only allowed to use a stretcher if they were in acute medical need, adding: “I was probably the first person to use this option for tourism reasons.”
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