Tokyo, Jan 4 : Japanese media on Saturday reported that 116-year-old Tomiko Itooka, recognised as the world’s oldest person, has died of old age. Itooka died earlier this week at a nursing home in the city of Ashiya in western Japan where she resided, the city government in Hyogo Prefecture said, reported Kyodo News.
The Japanese woman was born on May 23, 1908, in Osaka as the eldest of three siblings. “At the special nursing home in the city where she resided, she enjoyed drinking her favourite lactic acid beverages and often said Thank you to the staff,” reported Japanese daily ‘The Mainichi’ on Saturday. Ashiya Mayor Ryosuke Takashima commented, “Through her long life, she gave us great courage and hope. I express my deepest condolences.” Itooka became the oldest living person in Japan in December 2023 following the death of Fusa Tatsumi, a 116-year-old in Kashiwara, Osaka Prefecture. Fusa Tatsumi was born on April 25, 1907, and had spent most of her last days in bed at a nursing home in Kashiwara. Tatsumi had become the oldest living person in Japan in April 2022 following the death of a 119-year-old woman in Fukuoka. Itooka was subsequently recognised as the world’s oldest living person by Guinness World Records in September 2024, following the death of the previous holder, Maria Branyas Morera, a 117-year-old from Olot, Catalonia, Spain.