The world's oldest man dies at 125 years old

 

 Peruvian centenarian Marcelino Abad Tolentino

The world's oldest man dies at 125 years old

Peruvian centenarian Marcelino Abad Tolentino, known as "Machico," died at the age of 125, just days before his 126th birthday, in an incident that has reignited the debate over the mechanisms for documenting record ages globally.

According to press reports, the man died in his sleep inside a nursing home, after a life that spanned more than a century.
Although his age exceeds the officially recognized record, Guinness World Records has not officially recognized him due to the lack of documents proving his date of birth.
Machico was born in 1900 in a remote village in Peru.

He lived a simple life, relying on agriculture, far removed from the trappings of modern life, as he had no electricity or running water, and used an oil lamp for lighting.
The lack of official documents also led to him not being recognized as the oldest living person in the world.

According to documented records, the British woman Ethel Catterham still holds the official record, having reached 116 years and 222 days.
Mashiko had a difficult childhood after growing up as an orphan in extreme poverty. He remained out of the sight of the authorities for many years.

until he was identified during the COVID-19 pandemic, when he was enrolled in the elderly pension program and received for the first time an identity card and a government pension, before later moving to a nursing home where he spent his last years.

Over the past years, Peruvian authorities have tried to officially register him in the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest living person in the world, but the procedures were not completed due to the lack of official birth documents, which prevented the documentation of his record despite his exceptional age.