Young basketball player Olivier Rioux is so tall that he’s setting records simply by continuing his education.
The 18-year-old Montreal native recently graduated from high school and has committed to Florida. The school lists his height at a mind-blowing 7-foot-9. That would make him the tallest college basketball player in history.
Rioux measuring at 7-9 is the result of a bit of a growth spurt. When Ballislife.com filmed him in November 2023, he was listed at 7-foot-6.
A three-inch gain over seven months is massive, especially for a guy who was already in the Guinness Book of World Records just two years ago for being the world’s tallest teenager. He was 16 then, and already 7-foot-5. He told the Guinness Book of World Records website that his height is likely the result of having two very tall (though not record-breaking) parents.
We’re still not 100% sure why I’m so tall – after investigation, doctors could only explain it with the genetics that my family has. My father is 6’8, my mom is 6’2 and my older brother is 6’9. So we’re a pretty tall family! 👨👩👦👦📏
Unsurprisingly, Rioux has been tall pretty much since he’s been able to stand upright. According to his Florida profile, he was 6-foot-1 at just eight years old, and was 6-foot-11 by the time he was in sixth grade, roughly four years later. He’d shot past the seven-foot mark by the start of seventh grade.
If you’re having a hard time imagining what someone that tall looks like next to someone of average height, here you go.
We took this picture together two years ago, at the time, Olivier Rioux was 7-foot 6 inches. He is now 7-9. The incoming Florida freshman will be the tallest player in college basketball history. pic.twitter.com/gZSWrMa9Yb
— chuck swirsky (@ctsbulls) June 20, 2024
And here’s how Rioux looked playing basketball as a 6-11 12-year-old.
According to GatorsWire, Rioux is considered a “developmental project” so not much is expected of him as a freshman. Then again, no one expected a 7-5 16-year-old to grow four inches in two years, so anything is possible.
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