In a world where superheroes are often confined to comic book pages or movie screens, these real-life trailblazers prove that extraordinary feats are not just for the fictional realm.
From mastering echolocation to animal reflexes and superhuman resistance, these remarkable individuals have challenged the limits of their bodies and minds in order to break world records and inspire others along the way.
Unlike Superman or Captain America, their powers do not come from outer space or miracle serums—they are the result of relentless dedication, creativity, and the drive to push beyond what most consider possible.
#1 Kenichi Ito
Superpower: Superspeed (on all fours)
Dedicating his life to studying the ways monkeys run, this Japanese athlete from Tokyo managed to hold the Guinness World Record for running 100 meters on all four limbs from November 6, 2015 to June 30, 2022.
His athletic achievements inspired hundreds of competitors, such as Collin McClure from Ohio, who dethroned Ito with a record of 15.66 at 100m vs Ito’s 15.71.
Ito worked as a janitor, mopping floors on all fours to perfect his four-limbed running technique. His record changed his life, allowing him to transition from janitor, to athlete and now to the proud owner of a solar energy company.
Image credits: Guinness World Records
#2 Isao Machii
Superpower: Sonic Samurai
Japanese swordsman Isao Machii possesses reflexes so sharp that he can slice a speeding airsoft pellet in half with his katana. His incredible precision has earned him multiple world records and appearances on television showcasing his skills.
Machii holds several Guinness World Records related to his craft, including most katana cuts to one mat, fastest 1,000 martial arts sword cuts, and fastest tennis ball cut by sword at 440 mph.
Machii specializes in Iaido, a Japanese martial art that emphasizes unsheathing a katana at blindingly fast speeds in order to retaliate against sudden threats.
Image credits: Mark Davis / Getty
#3 Eskil Ronningsbakken
Superpower: Fearlessness
Norwegian stuntman Eskil Rønningsbakken is renowned for his death-defying balancing acts. Some of his most notable feats include cycling upside down on a tightrope suspended over a Norwegian fjord and tightrope walking between two hot air balloons in flight.
Eskil began training when he was five years old, joining a circus at the age of 12 under the tutelage of Moscow State Circus trainer Peter Jakob.
The stuntman believes his art can make people gain confidence in themselves. He visited Nairobi in 2009 in hopes of inspiring the youth by teaching them acrobatics.
“I have to prove that the impossible is possible,” he said at the time.
Image credits: eskil_balance
#4 Dean Karnazes
Superpower: Ultra Endurance
Born in Inglewood, California, to Greek-American parents, Dean Karnazes began running home from kindergarten and never really stopped.
He once ran 350 miles without sleep, completed 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days, and crossed the US on foot from Disneyland to NYC in just 75 days. His extreme feats are detailed in his best-selling memoir, Ultramarathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner.
Despite criticism from some in the ultra-running community, Karnazes has remained a public inspiration—earning an ESPY, starring in documentaries, and even appearing in Stan Lee’s television series Superhumans for his body’s alleged ability to recycle lactic acid—often associated with the burning sensation of exercise—like a machine.
Image credits: Ezra Shaw / Getty
#5 Jessica Cox
Superpower: Limitless Adaptability
Born without arms in Sierra Vista, Arizona, due to a rare birth defect, Jessica Cox learned to do nearly everything with her feet.
From writing, driving, scuba diving, and even applying her contact lenses, Cox never let her condition stop her from achieving her dreams and enjoying life to the fullest.
In 2008, after three years of training, she became the world’s first licensed armless pilot. She also holds a fourth-degree black belt in taekwondo, earned her psychology degree from the University of Arizona in 2005, and completed a 40-mile ride in El Tour de Tucson in 2014—all without prosthetics, which she stopped using at age 14.
Cox now travels the world as a motivational speaker, hoping to inspire others with her example.
Image credits: rightfooted
#6 Daniel Tammet
Superpower: Savant Brainpower
Daniel Tammet, a British savant, is known for his extraordinary mathematical and linguistic abilities. He once recited the number pi to 22,514 digits from memory and has an uncanny ability to learn new languages at remarkable speed. But behind these triumphs lies a journey marked by misunderstanding and late diagnosis.
At 25 years old, Tammet was diagnosed with both Asperger’s syndrome and savant syndrome—a rare condition in which individuals with developmental differences exhibit exceptional skills in areas like music, art, or mathematics.
“The development of skills in someone on the autism spectrum is influenced by cognitive variability,” special education teacher Nadia Figueroa told Bored Panda.
“This means educational approaches must be tailored to each person’s individual needs.”
Though he is considered to have high-functioning autism, he had to navigate much of life on his own, without the support systems that might have helped him earlier.
“I was a misfit,” Tammet said. “The world was made up of words. But I thought and felt and sometimes dreamed in a private language of numbers.”
Image credits: Roberto Ricciuti / Getty
#7 Wim Hof
Superpower: Cold Resistance
Dutchman Wim Hof—also known as "The Iceman"—has achieved remarkable feats such as climbing 7,400 meters on Mount Everest in shorts and running a half marathon above the Arctic Circle barefoot.
He attributes his cold endurance to a combination of breathing techniques, meditation, and gradual exposure to cold, known as the Wim Hof Method.
Hof believes in people having untapped potential that can only come out by exposing their bodies to extreme and uncomfortable situations.
“Confidence comes when you have control with your own brain,” he said. “If you can learn how to use your mind, anything is possible.”
Image credits: Wim Hof
#8 Asha Mandela
Superpower: Cobra Hair
Born in Trinidad and Tobago and now living in Florida, Asha Mandela has spent over four decades growing her hair—which she lovingly calls her “royal crown.”
Her locs officially measured 19 feet 6.5 inches in 2009, earning her a Guinness World Record. Today, they stretch to a reported 110 feet and weigh more than 40 pounds, requiring six bottles of shampoo and two full days to dry.
Lovingly described by her fans as the “real-life Rapunzel,” Asha used her fame to launch a beauty product brand that promotes the unique aesthetic of her home country.
Among her products are hair growth creams for every type of hair, which she designed alongside her husband, Emmanuel Chege, a professional stylist from Kenya.
Image credits: ashaamandela
#9 Juan Ruiz
Superpower: Echolocation
Juan Ruiz from Mexico was born blind. As a result, his body mastered echolocation—the ability to understand spaces by interpreting the way sounds bounce off surfaces—to navigate his surroundings.
On July 23, 2013, he set a Guinness World Record by completing the fastest 10-obstacle slalom on a bicycle while blindfolded in just 25.43 seconds, relying solely on sound to guide him.
“This obstacle course is not just poles; it represents a goal, and the bigger our goals, the more obstacles we will face. And, if you should fail, you just pick yourself up and try again. But, at the end we will experience victory!” Ruiz said in an interview.
Image credits: visioneers
#10 Takeru Kobayashi
Superpower: Mega Hunger
Japanese competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi revolutionized his field by setting seemingly insurmountable records—twice.
In 2001, he set his first world record by eating 50 hot dogs in 12 minutes, almost doubling the previous that of his predecessor. Not content with this, he extended his training, which involved drinking almost five litres of water in under 90 seconds to increase the capacity of his stomach and the speed at which it expands.
“It’s similar to building muscle,” he explained.
His training paid off, as he set a new record in 2009 by eating 64 and a half hot dogs in the same amount of time.
Kobayashi was dethroned by American Joey Chestnut in July 2021, who beat him by eating 76 hot dogs in 10 minutes, and defeated him again in September 2024 by increasing that number to 83.
Image credits: Bobby Bank / Getty
#11 Dickson Oppong
Superpower: Extreme Water Consumption
Known for his ability to consume large quantities of water rapidly, Dickson Oppong from Ghana—also known as the “Waterman”—has demonstrated the capacity to drink up to 1.5 gallons (about five liters) of water in under two minutes.
Oppong also boasts impressive plate spinning abilities, appearing in many talent shows where he combines both abilities to entertain the audience.
Image credits: Ralf Juergens / Getty
#12 Matthias Schlitte
Superpower: Super Arm
Born with a genetic condition that resulted in his right arm being significantly larger than his left, German arm wrestler Matthias Schlitte turned this into an advantage.
Nicknamed "Hellboy" for the similarities between his forearm and those of the comic book character, he has achieved numerous victories in international arm-wrestling competitions.
Describing himself as an “Armbassador,” Schlitte believes in people embracing and recognizing their unique strengths.
“I was 16 and I went into this small bar in Haldensleben and I only weighed 65kg and had to enter the 95kg-class. All these bigger men were laughing at me, but when I beat them all the men changed from laughing to respect and the rest is history,” he recounted.
Image credits: picture alliance / Getty
#13 Natasha Demkina
Superpower: X-Ray Vision
Born in Saransk, Russia, Natasha Demkina was just 10 when she told her mother she could see inside people’s bodies—down to their organs, bones, and tumors. Word spread fast after she reportedly diagnosed neighbors’ ailments with uncanny accuracy.
Her claims drew worldwide attention. In Japan, she wowed TV audiences by identifying fractures and metal implants.
In May 2004 she traveled to the US, where she faced a test by skeptical researchers in New York—correctly identifying 4 out of 7 medical conditions.
Image credits: psi-encyclopedia
