José Flores Flores, the Guanacaste farmer who turned 119 in July, is now at the center of a formal effort to have him recognized as the oldest man in recorded history. The Asociación Península de Nicoya Zona Azul, a group that promotes the Nicoya Peninsula’s reputation for long life, is preparing his case for Guinness World Records.
Its president, Jorge Vindas, said the association is still waiting on two documents needed for the application. He did not say what they are. Flores’ national identity card lists his birth as July 11, 1907, in Las Lajas de Cañas, Guanacaste. That date has not been validated by Guinness or by any of the international organizations that specialize in verifying extreme ages.
Those bodies typically require records from different stages of a person’s life that can be tied to the same individual. If the documents hold up, the numbers are remarkable. Guinness recognizes Japan’s Jiroemon Kimura, who died in 2013 at 116 years and 54 days, as the oldest man ever verified. Flores’ documented age already exceeds Kimura’s by more than two and a half years.
The oldest living man Guinness recognizes is Brazil’s João Marinho Neto, who turns 114 on Oct. 5. The oldest living person is British woman Ethel Caterham, who turned 117 in August. Only three people in history have verified lifespans longer than Flores’ current documented age. France’s Jeanne Calment died in 1997 at 122 years and 164 days.
Japan’s Kane Tanaka reached 119 years and 107 days, and American Sarah Knauss reached 119 years and 97 days. By his papers, Flores would pass Knauss on Oct. 17 and Tanaka on Oct. 27. His case has drawn attention at the highest level. President Laura Fernández visited Flores in July and ordered a new home built for him, one suited to someone of his age, according to AFP.
Flores lives with relatives in Sardinal de Carrillo, on the Nicoya Peninsula, and now gets around with a walker. His granddaughter, Hellen Flores, told AFP he stays active in the afternoons. He plays dominoes with the family, watches his programs and naps in his chair. She said his treatment is limited to two pills and some drops for his prostate and heart, and that he still has the occasional whisky.
At 105, she said, he was still dancing, carrying a machete and heading out to do chores. She described a lively youth that included parties, smoking, drinking and boxing. Flores worked on a banana plantation and as a farmer. His granddaughter credits his diet and the care of his family for his long life.
According to his granddaughter, Flores has been a widower for 23 years. He had eight children, one of whom has died. Flores himself, speaking with some difficulty, said God was the secret to his long life. His advice to young people was to work the way he did.
He has not lost his loyalties either as for his birthday, his soccer club, Liga Deportiva Alajuelense, gave him a jersey bearing the number 119. Sardinal lies in one of the world’s five Blue Zones, regions where longevity researchers have found people living unusually long, healthy lives. Several residents of the Nicoya Peninsula have passed 100.
Whether Flores enters the record books now depends on paperwork older than most of the 20th century. Until the documents are accepted, he remains a claimant rather than a verified record holder. If they hold, he will have outlived every man whose age has ever been confirmed.
