Thousands of South Africans gathered at a sports stadium in Pretoria on Heritage Day to take part in what was hoped to be a world record-breaking event — the largest cookout in history. The goal was to surpass the current record of 2,220 people grilling at the same time, which was set in Japan's Ishigaki City in 2023. Organizers anticipated around 3,000 participants and set up approximately 500 grilling stations for the event. According to Paulina Sapinska, a Guinness World Records adjudicator, participants had to grill for a minimum of five minutes at the same time to be counted. Those who left their stations during the event would be disqualified. The cookout took place on Heritage Day, a national holiday in South Africa that has become informally known as "Braai Day." A "braai" is a traditional South African outdoor cooking event, often involving the grilling of meat and is a popular social gathering. The event featured a wide variety of meats, including boerewors (a type of sausage), burgers, steaks, and chops. Alex Coetzee, one of the participants and someone who had taken part in a previous record attempt in 2025, expressed confidence that this year's effort would be successful. He noted that last year's attempt failed because many people left their grilling stations early. Sapinska mentioned that officials were still reviewing the evidence and that the final decision on whether the record was broken might not be known until Friday. The outcome will depend on whether all participants met the required criteria, including the five-minute grilling period and remaining at their stations throughout the event.