Dubai: Lebanese expat Dareen Barbar, 43, an inspirational amputee athlete, has set a new Guinness World Records title for longest Samson’s chair/static wall sit (for a female amputee) achieving a total of 2 minutes and 8.24 seconds on Friday at Champs Sports Club in Al Quoz.

Static wall sit is putting your back against a wall and holding this position until your thighs are parallel to the floor. The static wall sit for a female amputee is one of the new categories introduced by Guinness World Records (GWR) aimed at encouraging people with impairments to achieve world record titles.

After setting the world record, Dareen said: “I lost my left leg in June 1993 at the age of 15 due to bone cancer, and today (June 4) in the same month after 28 years, I am back to win the battle. My story has inspired many throughout the years, and today I make history hoping to inspire millions around the world.

“I thank Guinness World Records for considering the new classifications for people with determination, and I am proud to be part of a campaign that will change the lives of millions across the globe,” she added.

The record broken by Dareen was 1 min and 15 seconds. She entered in the LA1 category (unilateral above knee amputation), where there is absence of the challenger’s leg from above or through the knee joint. Unilateral refers to a single leg, meaning the pressure when Dareen did the feat was on her right leg.

Before losing her leg, Darren was an aspiring basketball player who used to play for her school. Then she was diagnosed with an aggressive osteogenic sarcoma that led to her leg getting amputated because of the unbearable pain.

She struggled with body image and felt insecure about herself. But she fought back. On her personal web page, Dareen describes herself in three words: “Passionate, Determined and Resilient”.

Dareen led a normal life but she had another accident in 2013, six months after giving birth to her daughter. She fractured her hip on the side of her amputation after falling over in her kitchen and had to have two screws in the hip.

It was a devastating experience and she thought she would never walk again again. With the help of her doctors and advanced prosthesis, Dareen underwent rehabilitation. Showing true grit, she recovered fast and in January 2015, she took part in a four-kilometre marathon in Dubai. She said: “It was a big achievement for me because I never walked that distance all at once in my life as an amputee.”

Participating in the 4km run also fired up Dareen’s passion for physical fitness. She frequented the gym to keep my strength and stamina and eventually I got a certification as a gym instructor.

Dareen then became a fitness instructor and a life coach. She said in a previous interview: “Learn to love yourself and happy to be you, eventually people will see you confidence and love it, because confidence is beauty. There is no limit to how much we can achieve in life.”

A true athlete of determination, Dareen also had many records and achievements. She became the first Arab amputee to win the World Beauty Fitness & Fashion (WBFF) in London in 2017 and finished first to finish the Super Sprint (SS) triathlon in 2018.

Dareen is also popular on social media, with over 27,000 followers on Instagram. As for her next achievement, Dareen told Gulf News that she will attempt to break her own record next year.

Meanwhile, GWR adjudicator Danny Hickson said Dareen’s achievement will add to the UAE 430 world records.

“The record broken today marks the launch of the Guinness World Records Impairment Records Initiative, which sees the introduction of an initial 23 classification categories for physical, intellectual and visual impairments. The classifications, created with the support of external experts, will be applicable across all sports, strength and ‘journey’ records,” according to GWR.