The world's oldest couple, Lyle and Eleanor Gittens. Photo: Youtube capture
A couple from Miami, who recently achieved the title of the world's longest-living couple, say they achieved this feat just by loving each other, The Guardian writes.
“We love each other,” Eleanor Gittens, 107, told LongeviQuest when the centenarian website asked what the secret of her 83 years of marriage to her husband, Lyle, was.
108-year-old Lyle Gittens' answer to this question was, “I love my wife.”
The Gittens' emotional statements about each other came as LongeviQuest's global validation panel checked the couple's 1942 marriage certificate, US census records and archival material spanning decades to confirm they are the world's longest-married couple.
An article published on November 4 by LongeviQuest noted that the Gittens took over the title after the death in October of Brazilian Manoel Angelim Dino.
Dino, 106, and his 85-year-old wife Maria de Sousa Dino, 102, were, as of February, the world's longest-married couple, according to LongeviQuest.
Lyle and Eleanor Gittens met in 1941 at a college basketball game where he was playing for Clark Atlanta University and she was a spectator.
The two fell in love and decided to marry, despite the fact that they were certain that Lyle would be drafted into the army due to World War II. They married on June 4, 1942, after Lyle received a three-day leave from training at a US military base in Georgia.
On the wedding day, Lyle met Eleanor's family for the first time. He recalled for LongeviQuest that he had to travel to his bride in a racially segregated train car—a long journey before the dawn of the US civil rights era, which Lyle says was worth the effort because of Eleanor.
At 107 and 108, Eleanor & Lyle Gittens of Miami have been officially recognized by LongeviQuest as the world's longest-married couple.
A love story 83 years in the making ❤️
🎥 Watch their full story: https://t.co/7y2nYoF1gW#LongeviQuest #WorldRecord #Longevity #LoveStory #Miami— LongeviQuest (@LongeviQuest) November 4, 2025
