The world's biggest rubber ball constructed by a man from Swansea is to be flown all the way to America for its first bounce.

An American TV show is going to drop Tony Evans' huge rubber ball to see if will actually bounce back from the ground.

I'm not sure if it will bounce or just go 'boing' and fall apart

Tony Evans

The American TV Show Ripley's Believe It Or Not, which features all things weird and wacky, is flying the 62-year-old from Portmead in Swansea out to the US next month.

The ball, which contains more than six million rubber bands and weighs 2,524 lbs, will then be tested a location in the States and the results filmed.

However, Mr Evans, a full-time foster carer, is uncertain whether the ball will survive the experiment.

"I'm not sure if it will bounce or just go 'boing' and fall apart.

"But it will be a fitting end for it to be dropped from the sky.

The Millennium Stadium hosts the weigh-in

"I'll be glad to see the back of it. It's not a very practical thing to have around the house."

For the last five years, building the ball - with rubber bands donated from across the UK - has been a painstaking labour of love for Mr Evans.

It has steadily grown in size and in May a weigh-in at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium certified the giant object as a Guinness World Records winner.

The ball weighed in at 2,524 lbs, squashing the previous figure of 2,450lbs.

The impressive object now has a circumference measuring 14ft 8 ins, a diameter of 4ft 6ins and stands 4ft 5ins tall.

Despite its massive size - dwarfing rivals made by other rubber band enthusiasts- the ball serves a purpose.

Mr Evans takes it to events around the UK to raise money for charity.

Smaller balls

The foster carer and his wife Elizabeth have been fostering children for around eight years, and the ball provides something for the youngsters to do.

"Every child that comes here wants to build a rubber band ball," he said.

"There are now several smaller balls around the house."

A spokesman for the American TV show said they had not chosen a location for the historic first bounce yet.

The resulting programme will be screened in the New Year, the spokesman added.