A Japanese woman who was certified as the world’s oldest person on Monday died aged 119.
According to AFP, Kane Tanka was born on January 2, 1903, in the southwestern region of Japan called Fukuoka.
It is in the same year that the Wright brothers flew for the first time and Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize.
Sources say that Tanaka was in good health and she enjoyed board games, solving maths problems, soda and chocolate. Until recently, she lived at a nursing home.
In her youthful years, she run a noodle and rice cake shop in her local town and got married in 1922, giving birth to four children. After a few years, she adopted her fifth child.
When the Guinness World Records recognized her as the oldest person alive in 2019, she was asked what moment she was happiest in her life. Her answer was; “Now”
“One of Kane’s favourite pastimes is a game of Othello and she’s become an expert at the classic board game, often beating rest-home staff,” Guinness said.
Local governor Seitaro Hattori hailed Tanaka’s life after she passed away on April 19.
“I was looking forward to seeing Kane-san on this year’s Respect for the Aged Day (a national holiday in September) and celebrating together with her favourite soda and chocolate,” he said in a statement on Monday.
Hattori said he was extremely saddened by the news of her passing.
With around 28 percent aged 65 or over, Japan is recognized to have the world’s most elderly population. This is according to World Bank data.
Jeanne Louise Calment, a French woman who died aged 122 years and 164 days in 1997 was the oldest-ever living person verified by Guinness.