TOKYO (AP) — At 116 years old, Japanese woman Tomiko Itooka has become the world's oldest person after Maria Branyas died at 117, according to the Guinness World Records.
Her age and birth date (23 May 1908) were confirmed by the Gerontological Research Group, which confirms details of people believed to be over 110 years old, putting her at the top of the World's Super-Old People list.
Itooka was a resident of a nursing home in Ashiya, Hyogo Prefecture, and the city also confirmed his birth date. Itooka gained the title of world's oldest person after Branyas' family announced his death on Tuesday at age 117. Guinness confirmed Itooka's new record on Thursday.
“Thank you,” she said when told she was now the oldest living person in the family, a sentiment she often shares with her caregivers at home.
Ito-oka celebrated her birthday three months ago and received a bouquet of flowers, a cake, and a card from the mayor. She drinks Calpis, a popular yogurt-flavored drink, every morning. Her favorite food is bananas.
Born in Osaka, Itooka was a volleyball player in high school and, according to Guinness, married at age 20 and has two daughters and two sons.
During World War II, Itooka worked as an office worker in her husband's textile factory. After her husband passed away in 1979, she lived alone in Nara until she moved into a nursing home. She climbed the 3,067-meter Mount Ontake twice and continued to enjoy long-distance hiking even after turning 100.
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Yuri Kageyama can be found on X: https://x.com/yurikageyama
