Three boys and one girl are born prematurely at 26 weeks but chances of survival are good, says TV channel following Annegret Raunigk’s pregnancy

A 65-year-old German woman has given birth to quadruplets after undergoing an artificial insemination procedure in Ukraine, it was revealed on Saturday. The woman, Annegret Raunigk, already has 13 children.

The quadruplets – three boys and a girl – were born prematurely at 26 weeks in a Berlin hospital but have “good chances of surviving”, according to the entertainment channel RTL, which has negotiated exclusive rights to the woman’s story.

Raunigk lives in Berlin and is an English and Russian teacher who is close to retirement. In addition to her children, she has seven grandchildren. RTL said the new arrivals make her the world’s oldest mother of quadruplets. The boys have been named Dries, Bence and Fjonn and the girl Neeta.

The 65-year-old became pregnant after undergoing several artificial insemination procedures in Ukraine and made headline news in April when the German press revealed that the attempt had resulted in a quadruple pregnancy. At the time, she said she decided to try to have another child because her youngest daughter, who is nine, wanted a little brother or sister, according to RTL.

At the time, the Bild am Sonntag tabloid quoted Raunigk, whose oldest daughter is 44, as saying it had been “a shock” when doctors first broke the news that she was expecting quadruplets though she did not consider reducing the number of embryos and said she had no reservations about the challenge facing her.

“I’m not actually afraid. I simply assume I’ll remain healthy and fit. In matters of organisation I have enough experience, that’s not new for me,” she was quoted as saying in Bild.

Raunigk made headlines 10 years ago, when she gave birth to her 13th child, Lelia, at the age of 55. That pregnancy was also the subject of an exclusive coverage deal with RTL.

“At first, I only wanted one child,” she told reporters. “Not all were planned. But then things happen. I’m not a planner but rather spontaneous. And children keep me young.”

Last month, Raunigk was accused of acting irresponsibly because she will be more than 70 years old when the quadruplets enter school. However, she has since dismissed the criticism. “You can never know what will happen. Things can also happen to you when you’re 20,” she said, adding that “it’s up to each individual to decide when they become a parent.”