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Oldest person dies at 115

AMSTERDAM: The holder of the record for the world's oldest living person, Dutchwoman Hendrikje van Andel-Schipper, died on Tuesday at age 115, according to the director of the home for the elderly where she lived. Ms. Van Andel died peacefully in her sleep in the early morning hours, the home's director Johan Beijering said. ``She was very clear mentally right up to the end, but the physical ailments were increasing,'' Beijering said. ``She said `It's been nice, but the man upstairs says it's time to go'.'' Ms. Van Andel, known as ``Henny,'' lived in Hoogeveen since World War II, moving to the Westerkim elderly home when she was 106.

A fan of the soccer club Ajax, she was born in 1890 and celebrated her 115th birthday on June 29. Her status as ``oldest person'' was recognised by Guinness Book of World Records last year. Guinness spokesman Sam Knights said now the oldest authenticated person would be American woman Elizabeth Bolden, 115, of Tennessee. The oldest man is Emiliano Mercado del Toro, 114, of Puerto Rico. Ms. Van Andel had no children or immediate family and her husband, Dick van Andel, died of cancer in 1959. Beijering said her closest living relative was a nephew who lives in Spain. But she had many friends in the home and enjoyed her celebrity status in the Netherlands after she assumed the ``oldest'' title in May 2004. She advised others who wanted a long life to ``keep breathing'' and eat pickled herring, a favourite Dutch snack. ``She wanted me to tell everybody that she enjoyed the attention, the friends, and the good care she had,'' Beijering said ``She felt that being the oldest person in the world for more than a year was long enough.'' — AP

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