Romanian brothers Giuliano and Claudio Stroe look like your typical European youngsters. Dressed in shorts, matching Iron Man shirts and running shoes, you might even say they look cute.
Yet in reality they are two tenacious kids who are anything but typical. The talented gymnasts are capable of extraordinary feats of physical strength, endurance and balance. And they've managed to achieve such physical prowess even before they've popped their first spot or had their first shave.
Giuliano, eight - older by two years and slightly taller - is the proud holder of one Guinness World Record and several other world records. 'Giuliano has the record for walking on his hands while holding a ball on his feet,' says the boys' father, Iulian Stroe, a former child gymnast. 'He walked 10metres in 24.37 seconds.'
Yet the most stunning thing is the boy set the record aged only four. His other world record efforts have yet to be certified by Guinness judges, which, Stroe says, is more a financial matter, rather than anything to do with his son's ability.
'To get a Guinness record, you need to pay about Euro5,000 (about HK$48,350) to get it officially certified,' Stroe says. 'That's on top of travel, hotel and food [costs]. That's the main difference between a world record and a Guinness record. I'm happy with what he's done; the [certificate] doesn't really matter to me.'
Claudio has no records, but he's well on his way to matching Giuliano's physical achievements. He started gymnastics at the age of 18months, and performs most of the same exercises as Giuliano, but with fewer repetitions. 'When Claudio just turned three, he was able to do one 90-degree push-up,' Stroe says. 'Giuliano was not able to do it until he was four.'