He doesn’t speak any of the languages but that doesn’t stop him from belting out each country’s national song. From Russian to South African, Indian to Saudi Arabian, Thean has them down to a T.

“It’s like learning any normal song,” he told the South China Morning Post (SCMP). “Remember the K-pop craze, where everyone was singing songs in Korean without knowing the language? It’s a similar principle.”

Thean, who is an in-house counsel for a company in Kuala Lumpur, started learning the anthems out of boredom in 2002. Since then, according to SCMP, he has memorised the national anthems of most of Europe, Asia, South America and North America.

His goal is to continue until he has the anthems of each country in every continent committed to memory.

The 31-year-old told SCMP that he had always enjoyed singing although he doesn’t play any instrument despite seven years of piano lessons.

“I’m a congenital shower singer,” he quipped.

It was easier for him to learn some national anthems than others as the pronunciation was more straightforward. For example, the French, Spanish and German anthems were relatively easy. However, he said he struggled more with the Danish and Arabic anthems which were “very challenging”.

Although he enjoys using his remarkable skills as an ice-breaker or during performances at trivia nights and events, Thean said he would not do it for money.

“That would take the fun out of it,” he said, according to the SCMP report.