Dumitru Comanescu from Romania has been awarded the title of the world’s oldest man and he says that love is the secret to long life.

Dumitru Comanescu, aged 111 years and 203 days old, inherited the title following the death of British man Bob Weighton, who died yesterday aged 112.

In his words:

“I feel honored and blessed to be, officially, the oldest man in the world and to represent Romania at the highest level! It’s incredible!”

Talking about how he has lived so long, he explains that the secret of his long life was the love of his wife, sons, and grandchildren.

Comanescu graduated from university in 1933 and worked as an agricultural engineer and in plant pathology for an astonishing 70 years, according to The Daily Mail.

The great-grandfather has lived through an impressive number of historical moments including both world wars, numerous Romanian military dictatorships, as well the Soviet Union’s occupation of Romania between 1944 and 1958.

Before now, Comanescu was declared the oldest Romanian citizen of Bucharest in February this year and awarded around €1,046 and an honorary plaque as an homage to his life.

The Guinness World Records have confirmed his status as the world’s oldest man after Bob Weighton, who was 112 years old, died from cancer.

Weighton had only been the world’s oldest man since February after the dead of 112-year-old Chitetsu Watanabe from Japan and passed away at his flat in Hampshire.

The oldest verified person in the world to have ever existed was Jeanne Calment of France, who was born in 1875 and died in 1997, having survived until she was 122 years and 164 days old.