Olivier Rioux, the world’s tallest teenager at 7ft 9in, scored his first collegiate field goal for the Florida Gators in a 102-61 win against Saint Francis on Wednesday night. The centre caught a bounce pass from CJ Ingram and dunked, sparking celebrations from teammates and the home crowd.
Florida coach Todd Golden described the moment as “pretty special”, noting Rioux’s vertical leap. Fans had been chanting “We want Ollie” before Golden substituted him in with two minutes left. Rioux also recorded a hard foul earlier in his brief appearance.
Rioux, a 19-year-old redshirt freshman from Canada, had previously made his debut in early November, becoming the tallest person to play college basketball. He scored his first point via a free throw in a later game, but Wednesday’s dunk was his first field goal.
Standing two inches taller than former NBA players Gheorghe Mureșan and Manute Bol, Rioux already holds a Guinness World Record. He chose to redshirt last season, working on his game while often going viral for his height, such as ducking under doorways and cutting nets while standing flat-footed.
Golden has said Rioux will only play in blowout games due to the depth of Florida’s frontcourt. Rioux welcomed the challenge of competing against teammates Alex Condon, Thomas Haugh, Rueben Chinyelu and Micah Handlogten in practice.
