Peru claims Marcelino Abad is 124. Is he the world’s oldest person?
- Peru to help man apply to the Guinness World Records for independent verification
- The oldest living woman is 117, while the oldest person ever verified reached 122
Peru’s Andean mountains may hold the secret to longevity and the world’s oldest ever person, if a new claim by state officials of a 124-year-old man born in 1900 are proven to be true.
The country’s government has claimed that local resident Marcelino Abad from the central Peruvian region of Huanuco is 124, which would make him by a distance the oldest living person and even top the oldest ever independently verified human.
“Among the tranquillity of the flora and fauna of Huanuco, Marcelino Abad Tolentino or ‘Mashico’ developed a healthy way of life and inner peace, reflected in his good health and friendly personality,” the government said in a statement.
“This allowed him, with resilience and skill, to overcome 12 decades of life and on April 5th he just blew out 124 candles.”
Peruvian authorities say they are helping Abad apply to the Guinness World Records for independent verification.
