Guinness World Records explains why Censor’s 24-hour pull-up record was rejected

Brad Norton
Doug 'Censor' Martin breaking pull up record

Guinness World Records rejected ex-Call of Duty pro Doug ‘Censor’ Martin‘s 24-hour pull-up record despite thousands watching him beat the previous best while live.

On September 8, 2024, Censor beat the world record for the most pull-ups done in a 24-hour period. At 8,940 pull-ups, he was the new record-holder, though he continued pushing all the way through to 9,250 pull-ups in total, just to really cement his spot in the history books.

The herculean feat was streamed live for the world to see, with thousands tuning in to cheer on the former CoD pro. After training for a full year following a failed attempt at the record in July, 2023, Censor finally accomplished his goal.

Now, however, more than a month after shattering the record and submitting it to the officials at Guinness World Records, they’ve rejected his submission.

“I just got word on my application for Guinness,” Censor said in the midst of an October 15 Twitch stream. “Your application has not been recognized as that of an individual or for the purpose of personal achievement only.”

Throughout his record-breaking endeavor, Censor was sending all donations received directly to Project Purple, a charitable organization aiding those with pancreatic cancer. Also during the broadcast, he was advertising One More Rep Athletics & Fitness, a fitness company in the United States.

It’s this promotion of the charity specifically he believes has resulted in the submission being rejected. “If you represent a business, agency, charity, or government…that is why they denied me,” he stressed. “They denied me because I did it for charity.”

Censor soon went offline in order to further investigate the response, though clips from the stream have quickly made waves across social media. Most fans have been quick to label it “absolutely ridiculous.”

Responding to a tweet by Dexerto, Guinness set the record straight, stating they weren’t present when Censor beat the record.

“We are proud to still offer a free application service for individuals looking to break a record for their own personal achievement, and the process can be made faster via our priority service. But where businesses and brands are involved, there are associated fees,” they explained.

According to GWR, Censor’s application was canceled because of the event’s “corporate sponsorship” but noted they’ll continue to speak with the ex-Call of Duty pro and “look forward to assessing the evidence.”

Censor’s fans, meanwhile, aren’t too happy with the decision, especially after witnessing the record shatter live.

“They can deny it all they want, but we all saw Doug do it,” one said.