Panni Speirs is a contortion master coach, jazz musician, and motivational speaker who also holds the Guinness World Book of Records title for non-stop exercising (a very impressive 38 hours and 40 minutes!). In addition, Panni was our guest speaker at the 2017 WAS (World Acrobatics Society) Congress. So, we asked Panni to tell us more about her very fascinating life:

How did you first become involved in the sport/performing art of acrobatic gymnastics? The short answer is: by chance. The longer version is: As a 10-year-old, I spent most of my afternoons (weather permitting) at an outdoor swimming pool, which happened to be located directly across from the Budapest Cirkusz Building. This is a permanent stone building that first opened in 1889, and was remodeled in 1971. The acrobats from the Cirkusz used to come to the swimming pool before and between their shows, to practice in an open area. A crowd of people typically watched the “free show” – – including me. One day, one of the acrobats asked me if would I like to try some of the lifts they were doing. I checked with my mother, who nodded “yes,” and the next thing I knew, I was lifted high, in a Bridge position. That was my introduction to my future; performing as a circus arts ...