Former ‘world’s heaviest man’ defeats coronavirus

Mexican Juan Pedro Franco, the heaviest man in the world according to the Guinness World Records in 2017 with a weight of 595 kilograms, exercises at his house in Guadalajara, Jalisco state, Mexico on February 17, 2018. - Franco, 33, lost 250 kilograms after undergoing a medical treatment which included two surgeries and now dreams of being able to walk again. (Photo by ULISES RUIZ / AFP)

MEXICO CITY (AFP): A Mexican who was once the world's heaviest man has beaten the coronavirus, helped -- he believes -- by several years of dieting, exercise and stomach-reduction surgery that saw him shed hundreds of kilos.

Juan Pedro Franco used to weigh 595 kilos (1,310 pounds) -- more than the average male polar bear and enough to be certified by Guinness World Records in 2017.