Japan’s Kane Tanaka turned 117 on January 2, and revalidated the longest-standing woman record in the world, a milestone she celebrated this Sunday with a birthday party at the nursing home in southwest Japan where she lives.

Tanaka, recognized by the Gerontology Research Group (GRG) and the Guinness record as the oldest woman in the world, celebrated her birthday with staff and friends in the central Fukuoka.

Japan has one of the oldest societies in the world and in 2019 it exceeded for the first time the figure of 70,000 centenarians.

In that country, 88% of people 100 or older are women, according to data from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Welfare of Japan.

Tanaka is an example of the rapid demographic ageing of Japan, which has increased five times the number of centenarians censored since 2000, generating concern for the country’s economic prospects and future workforce, where the birth rate is also gradually being reduced.

On March 9, 2019, Tanaka was recognized as “the longest living person in the world and the longest living woman in the world”, as explained by the Guinness world records.

“During her stay in the nursing home, Ms. Tanaka begins her day at 6 am and retires to sleep at 9 pm, enjoys mathematical exercises and the classic board game, Othello,” Guinness officially reported.

The longest person of all time was Jeanne Louise Calment (France), who lived 122 years and 164 days.

The longest living man in the world is under investigation by that organization, “after the death of Mr Masazo Nonaka on January 20, 2019, with 113 years and 179 days”.

The record title for the longest living man of all time belongs to Jiroemon Kimura, also Japanese, who was born on April 19, 1897, and died at the age of 116 years and 54 days on June 12, 2013.

The longest-standing person of all time, according to the organization that records world records, was the French woman Jeanne Louise Calment, who lived 122 years and 164 days.

As part of her celebration, Tanaka, who turned 117 on January 2, savoured a piece of her birthday cake portion and smiling asked for a little more.