It might depend on the specific Android flavor. I tried that on an old phone, and while I could disable the actual Google search (tapping in the search bar did nothing) I could not remove the search bar. I also could not find a way to have it open my preferred search engine.
For length there is a Smoot https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoot
Edit: it’s 1.702 metres/ 5’7"