Asked how she lived so long, Koku, from a village in Chechnya, told an interviewer: “It was God’s will. I did nothing to make it happen.

“I see people going in for sports, eating something special, keeping themselves fit, but I have no idea how I lived until now.”

And she claimed: “I have not had a single happy day in my life. I have always worked hard, digging in the garden. I am tired.

“Long life is not at all God’s gift for me – but a punishment.”