 |
 |
It’s Aidan Koper’s big moment. The astrophysics-and-math grad walks onto a mat, picks up an electric lawnmower, heaves it upside down in the air – and balances it on his face. As the TV cameras move in for a close-up, the studio audience of The Ellen DeGeneres Show screams wildly. A stagehand hurls heads of lettuce at the mower’s blades to show the audience it’s indeed running.
“Unbelievable,” yells DeGeneres.
Even before graduating from U of T in 2004, Koper was dazzling TV audiences. On the Late Show with David Letterman, in 2002, he wiggled through a string-less tennis racket while juggling two balls. He has since progressed to squeezing through a racket rigged with 13-cm torches. “I burn off some of my arm hair, and sometimes my eyelashes, but that’s about it,” says Koper, 30. To prevent his entire body from going up in flames, he spins round and round.
Recent Posts
U of T’s 197th Birthday Quiz
Test your knowledge of all things U of T in honour of the university’s 197th anniversary on March 15!
Are Cold Plunges Good for You?
Research suggests they are, in three ways
Work Has Changed. So Have the Qualities of Good Leadership
Rapid shifts in everything from technology to employee expectations are pressuring leaders to constantly adapt
