Kane Tanaka, World's Oldest Man From Japan Dies At 119 Years Old

Kane Tanaka. (Twitter/@tanakakane0102)

JAKARTA - Kane Tanaka, the world's oldest person, has died in Japan at the age of 119, according to a statement issued by the country's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

Tanaka, who was born on January 2, 1903, died on April 19, the ministry said

Guinness World Records said they were saddened to hear of Tanaka's death, and said news of his death had been confirmed by senior gerontology consultant Robert Young, who also helped confirm his record as the oldest living person in 2019.

Guinness World Records said: "She became the oldest living person in January 2019 at 116 years and 28 days. She is also the second oldest person on record, behind Jeanne Calment who lived to age 122."

The family said in a tweet earlier this month that Tanaka had been sick frequently recently and was "in and out of hospital."

Born in 1903, Tanaka married a rice shop owner at the age of 19, and worked in the family shop until he was 103 years old.

Kane Tanaka. (Twitter/@tanakakane0102)

He twice survived cancer and lived through many historical events, including surviving the two World Wars and the Spanish Flu in 1918, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic.

CNN previously reported on Tanaka during his preparations to participate in the torch relay, ahead of the postponed Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics.

His plan was that he would pick up fire as he passed by Shime, in his home prefecture in Fukuoka. However, he ended up not participating, due to concerns about COVID-19.

Tanaka has been living in a nursing home in Fukuoka. Her family says she keeps her mind and body active, doing math and staying curious.

Tanaka's great-grandson Junko Tanaka created a Twitter account in January 2020 to celebrate the life of supercentenarian Tanaka.

She tweeted photos of her great-grandmother enjoying snacks like cookies and soda pop, including sharing her achievements and exchanges she had with relatives.

CNN previously reported Junko as saying of her grandmother: "I might be biased because I'm related to her, but I thought it was awesome. I wanted to share it with the world, so people can feel inspired and feel the joy."

It is known, By 2020, one in every 1,565 people in Japan is over 100 years old. More than 88 percent of them are women. Government figures released in July 2020 show that women have a life expectancy of 87.45 years compared to 81.4 for men.

Announcing Tanaka's death on its website on Monday, Guinness World Records said "the titles of oldest living person and oldest living person (female) are currently under investigation" and further details will be announced in due course.