The model maker says Guinness World Records rejected his efforts without even looking at his 7.19m (23.6ft) model, stating two reasons for its decision.
Richard Plaud, 47, spent eight years and 4,200 hours assembling 706,900 matches to build the world's tallest structure made of matches. The model measured at 7.19m (23.6ft), beating the record held by Lebanese model maker Toufic Daher since 2009. Plaud said he submitted an application to Guinness World Records but it was rejected without even being looked at. He said it was because the structure must be built from matches that are available to the public for purchase and don't have flammable red tips - and they must "not be cut, disassembled or deformed to the point where they are no longer recognised" as matches.
For 4,200 hours over the past eight years, Richard Plaud has used more than 700,000 matchsticks to assemble the masterpiece of his life: a nearly 24-foot-tall replica of the Eiffel.