Oldest Person Dies In Iowa a Few Weeks After Gaining Title
A woman who recently received the title of world's oldest woman has died in Iowa, her family revealed the news on Monday.
Dina Manfredini, 115, was a resident at the Bishop Drumm Retirement Center in Johnston and passed away on Monday morning, according to her granddaughter Lori Logli.
Guinness World Records confirmed Manfredini assumed the title of world's oldest living person less than two weeks ago after the previous holder, Besse Cooper of Georgia, died at the age of 116.
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Cooper received the mark of world's oldest person in January 2011.
"It's a sad day for me," Robert Young, Guinness senior consultant for gerontology, told the Associated Press.
He remembers talking with Cooper when she was 111 and was impressed with her mental ability.
"At that age she was doing really well, she was able to read books," he said.
Manfredini's family was honored to have been a part of her life and revealed that even she could not believe how old she was.
"She was active her whole life … she was a very giving person," Logli told Reuters.
"She could not believe that she was as old as she was," she added. "When we would tell her she would just shake her head in disbelief. She'd say, 'Oh, I'm an old lady.'"
Even though Manfredini was only the oldest person for 13 days, her time as the world's oldest person is not the shortest time on record, Guinness stated. America-born Emma Tillman, who died four days after she was named the world's oldest person in 2007, holds the record for shortest time spent as the world's oldest person.
Young said Jiroemon Kimura from Japan is now regarded as the oldest person in the world.
He was born on April 19, 1897, that means he is just 15 days younger than Manfredini. Kimura, who is form Kyotango in Kyoto, also is believed to be the second-oldest man in documented history. The oldest person ever recorded was Jeanne Calment of France, who lived to the age of 122 years and 164 days.
