116-year-old Japanese woman heir apparent to title of world's oldest living person

A 116-year-old Japanese woman is the heir apparent to the title of the world's oldest living person, a research group has said.

Tomiko Itooka, born on May 23, 1908, lives in the western Japanese city of Ashiya in the Hyogo province.

A former mountaineer, she is 116 years and 3 months old, the Gerontology Research Group, based in Los Angeles, California, said in a statement.

Tomiko's candidacy for a Guinness World Records Oldest Person title comes after Maria Branyas, former holder of the crown, died on Monday at the age of 117.

Born on March 4, 1907, in San Francisco, California, Branyas moved to Spain as a young child in 1915.

She had held the title of the world's oldest person since Jan. 17, 2023, following the death of French supercentenarian Lucile Randon at 118.

Branyas lived in Olot in Catalonia, Spain.

According to the research group, Tomiko, born in Osaka, Japan, is the second-eldest daughter among three siblings.

A graduate of Osaka Jogakuin Junior and Senior High School, she also played at the volleyball club.

After getting married at around age 20, Tomiko has two daughters and two sons.

During World War II, she stepped in for her husband, who operated a textile factory in South Korea.

She single-handedly managed a Japanese office and raised her children during this period.

After her husband's passing in 1979, she lived alone in her husband's hometown in Nara province for approximately a decade, said the research group.