Meet Seiichi Sano, the “oldest person to surf (male).”
Photo: Guinness World Records
Japan’s Seiichi Sano wins Guinness World Record…and makes it on Saturday Night Live.
What’s more impressive: A Guinness World Record or a shoutout on Saturday Night Live?
Well, Japan’s Seiichi Sano just got both. At 89 years old, he’s been honored with the Guinness World Record of the “oldest person to surf (male),” and subsequently was mentioned on SNL’s long-running satirical news series, “Weekend Update.”
Check out the announcement from Guinness World Records below, which includes footage of Seiichi surfing. (His signature move on a wave? Switch stance!)
(For clarification on his age: Seiichi was was “88 years and 288 days old when the record was verified on 8 July 2022…[he] was born in Hokkaido on 23 September 1933, meaning he’ll celebrate his 90th birthday this year.”)
Perhaps even more impressive than his current age is the fact that Seiichi didn’t even start surfing until he was 80 years old. You’ve heard of an adult learner before…how about an octogenarian learner?
According to the Guinness World Records announcement: “At the age of 80, after conquering Mount Fuji – the highest mountain in Japan – he suddenly thought to himself: ‘why don’t I take up surfing?’”
Then came SNL. In the episode from Saturday, April 1st, co-host of the “Weekend Update” Colin Jost took the headline, commenting:
“He truly embodies the surfing lifestyle, because every part of his body hangs loose.”
Boom. Roasted.
But, of course, Seiichi is adorably humbled by the honor.
“Holding the Guinness World Records certificate, I feel for the first time I have been acknowledged for something,” he said. “And it’s making a lot of people – including the bank manager who made me think about surfing – happy.
“Whether it be surfing or world record titles, it’s the can-do attitude that will get you there, not logic. Don’t complicate things. Just think that even this old grandpa’s done it – you should be able to achieve something as well!”
Cute. Too cute.
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