Chinese woman sets world record for domino topple

<br>SINGAPORE (AP) _ A 24-year-old woman from China tipped over 303,621 dominos on Monday, breaking a long-standing record for the world's longest solo domino topple. <br><br>Beijing-born Ma Lihua

Monday, August 18th 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SINGAPORE (AP) _ A 24-year-old woman from China tipped over 303,621 dominos on Monday, breaking a long-standing record for the world's longest solo domino topple.

Beijing-born Ma Lihua broke a 19-year-old record set by Germany's Klaus Friedrich, who set up and toppled 281,581 dominoes.

``There was a time when I was not feeling well but I had a goal to achieve so I continued to persevere,'' said Ma, who calls herself a ``dominologist.''

Ma said she put in 13-hour days for nearly seven weeks to lay out the dominos.

Bugs and rats meddled with her work. In one instance, a bug knocked over 10,000 tiles.

Organizers spread pungent leaves from a local tree _ thought to repel insects _ around the Singapore Expo hall where Ma staged the record attempt. They also laid down rat traps.

It took just over four minutes to knock down the series of white, red and yellow tiles that revealed the words ``World Record'' and images of electrical appliances.

The event was sponsored by South Korean electronics firm LG.