Madge Bester

Who is Madge Bester?

Madge Bester is the world's former shortest living woman. From South Africa, she measures 2 ft 1.5 in in height which was measured in 1991. Bester has osteogenesis imperfecta, which is characterized by brittle bones, and uses a wheelchair. She has been a campaigner for disabled rights, holding a 1998 press conference on the issue accompanied by Lin Yih-Chih, the world's smallest man.

Bester lives in a retirement village in Bloemfontein. Her mother Winnie, who died in 2001, also suffered from osteogenesis imperfecta and measured only 70 cm.