The world’s oldest man dies: how old was the Guinness Book of World Records title holder?

Juan Vicente Pérez Mora, the Venezuelan who held the Guinness record as the oldest man in the world since May 2022, died on Tuesday, a couple of months before his 115th birthday. He died in Táchira state, bordering Colombia, where he lived his entire long life.

The news has been confirmed by Táchira Governor Freddy Bernal, who published a mournful post on his account on the social network X (formerly Twitter). In the statement, he expressed regret at the loss of the super-centennial.

READ ALSO: Flat-earthers say solar eclipse proves their theory

Juan Vicente always attributed his longevity to constant work accompanied by adequate rest and sleeping early. For this reason he was recognized at 112 years as the oldest man in the world, surpassing Leonese Saturnino de la Fuente.

READ ALSO: Total solar eclipse: Prepare for cell service disruptions

Secret to longevity: A quiet life

The man born on May 27, 1909 and popularly known as ‘Uncle Juan’, had a total of eleven children who would give him descendants composed of 41 grandchildren, 18 great-grandchildren and 12 great-great-grandchildren. Juan Vicente dedicated more than 50 years of his life to agriculture, especially to the harvest of sugar cane and coffee.

He lived in a residence located in an alpine area of the Andean region, where he shared space with several family members and at the same time was under the care of doctors. He spent his last birthdays surrounded by family and celebrated them with Catholic liturgies and dishes of Creole cuisine.

During the last five years of his life he received numerous recognitions and honors. Aside from the Guinness world record, he was recognized in several local ceremonies and given distinctions by the government. His story became so well known that on his last birthday he received congratulations from Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and other political leaders.