March 9: Kane Tanaka from Fukuoka, Japan, has been officially confirmed as the oldest person livingat 116 years 66 days old as of 9 March 2019.

The supercentenarian was born prematurely on 2 January 1903, the same year the Wright brothers became the first to achieve powered flight. 

The seventh child of Kumakichi and Kuma Ota, Kane went on to marry Hideo Tanaka on 6 January 1922, four days after her 19th birthday.

Despite not meeting before their wedding day (something that was not unusual in Japan at the time), Kane and Hideo went on to have four children and adopt a fifth. 

Hideo ran a family business called Tanaka Mochiya, which made and sold sticky rice, Zenzai (a type of Japanese sweets), and Udon noodles.

After Hideo was called for military in 1937 during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Kane became more involved in the family business, polishing rice and making rice cakes while looking after her children as well as Kane's mother in law.

Kane's first son Nobuo also joined the military in 1943 and was held captive by the Soviet Union after the Second World War, returning to Japan in 1947.

Despite having several operations - including one for cataracts and another for colorectal cancer - Kane now lives a peaceful life at a rest home in Fukuoka. 

She normally wakes up at 6 a.m., and in the afternoon often studies subjects such as maths. One of Kane's favourite pastimes is a game of Othello and she's become an expert at the classic board game, often beating rest-home staff.

Kane was confirmed as the oldest person alive on 30 January 2019, and was presented with her certificate in a ceremony at her home.

116-year-old Kane is six years shy of the record for oldest person ever, which has been held by Jeanne Louise Calment (France) for the past 22 years.

Born on 21 February 1875, Jeanne died at a nursing home in Arles, southern France on 4 August 1997 at the age of 122 years 164 days.

 
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