An American has grown a pumpkin that weighs 1,161 kg

A Minnesota gardening teacher set a new US record for heaviest pumpkin on Monday by growing a giant pumpkin weighing 2,560 pounds (1,161 kg).

Travis Gienger of Anoki, Minnesota has set a new record and won the annual Northern California pumpkin weighing competition.

“Minnesota has a great mid-year, but spring is really hard in our area. So growing a pumpkin like that in Minnesota is next to impossible,” Gienger said. “It's like winning the Tour de France on a bike with a big wheel. You know, you can only hope, but it worked.”

Gienger carried the giant pumpkin for 35 hours to see how his hard work paid off at the 49th World Championship pumpkin weigh-in in Half Moon Bay, south of San Francisco.

“You think driving in a snowstorm is bad? Try driving with one of those things,” he said.

Gienger, who also won the same competition in Northern California in 2020, broke the record set last week in New York, where the grower grew a huge 2,554 lb (1,158 kg) pumpkin.