Paulette Olivier and Simone Thiot, French twins, are now believed to be the world's oldest twins. But before reaching the ripe age, the two had a small chance of survival at birth when they were born prematurely on Jan. 30, 1912.
The Mirror reported that French twins Olivier and Thiot are believed to be the world's oldest twins as the duo recently celebrated their 104th birthday. Their odds of survival at birth used to be slim after being born prematurely on the same year the Titanic sank.
"We were premature," Thiot shared. "We were due in March but we were born in January. They gave us a very small chance of surviving. I didn't even weigh a kilo."
The identical sisters revealed that the secret to their long lives is their closeness. "We are still alive because we have always stayed close," Olivier said.
The twins are now living together at a retirement home in Onzain, Central France. They are both widowed and have no children.
"We keep our independence - each of us has her own room - but we only need to cross the corridor to see and talk to each other," Olivier added. "We pity old people who are alone with no one to visit them."
The twins said that aside from the closeness, the secret to a long life is a "simple life". "No alcohol. And lots of sport. We did gymnastics for a long time, and a huge amount of cycling - almost every day."
According to AFP, Thiot and Olivier spend most of their time in the retirement home keeping up with current affairs, watching television, listening to music and reading. Thiot was a dressmaker while Olivier used to work as a hairdresser.
Olivier was widowed at the age of 36 while Thiot lost her husband when she was 64. They have an only brother who died in an accident at the age of 99.
