Walking from his apartment to classes and then to the University of Florida's basketball facility, Olivier Rioux poses for dozens - sometimes hundreds - of pictures a day.
Vertical shots, of course. Rioux won't fit in the frame any other way.
At 2.4 meters tall, Rioux is the biggest man on campus.
The Florida freshman, a happy-go-lucky Canadian who owns a spot in the Guinness record book as the world's tallest teenager, will make basketball history when he plays for the Gators this season. The cheerful guy known as "Oli" will become the tallest to play college hoops, supplanting the 2.31m Kenny George of UNC Asheville from the 2006-08 seasons.
He's 7.6 centimeters taller than Yao Ming, Tacko Fall and Shawn Bradley.
"You get asked questions every day," said Rioux. "You don't have a single three seconds to yourself when you're outside ... people are curious."
His college teammates have gotten used to it by now.
"It's really weird looking up to someone," said 2.16m Micah Handlogten. "People normally ask me, 'You're so tall. Do you play basketball?' No one says a word to me now. Everyone just looks to him. It's kind of crazy."
Rioux actually embraces it. He welcomes the stares, the questions and all the requests.
Rioux has worked hard to prepare for Division I basketball, but no one expects the 18-year-old to be a star at this level, certainly not right away. The Gators do expect Rioux to be a fan favorite, beginning with their season opener against USF next week.
Rioux grew up in Terrebonne, Quebec, and realized at an early age he was different. He was taller than most of his teachers in elementary school and crossed the 1.8m mark by age eight.
His mom is 1.87m, his dad is about 2.03m and his older brother is 2.06m.
He started playing basketball at age five and ended up at Florida as a preferred walk-on. He's one of six foreign players on coach Todd Golden's roster and a clear project despite having played in several international tournaments with the Canadian national under-18 and under-19 teams.
Rioux has made strides in just a few months. His mobility and coordination have improved. He can dunk without leaving his feet and has a neat hook shot.
He wears No 32 because of his affection for Hall of Famers Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
It takes little effort for Olivier Rioux to dunk the ball. AP
Olivier Rioux stands out during the Gators' team huddles. AP
