Tunde Onakoya

Last updated
Tunde Onakoya
Country Nigeria
Born (1994-10-06) 6 October 1994 (age 30)
Ikorodu, Nigeria
Peak rating 2197 (July 2016)

Tunde Onakoya (born 6 October 1994) is a Nigerian chess player and coach, who holds the Guinness World Records for the longest marathon chess game. [1] [2] [3] [4] As the founder and covener of Chess in Slums Africa, [5] [6] [7] he has organised a number of interventions for children across slums in Lagos state including Majidun (Ikorodu), Makoko and recently, Oshodi.

Contents

Background and career

Onakoya learned to play chess at a barber's shop in a slum in Ikorodu, Lagos, where he grew up. [8] Being unable to pay for his secondary school, his mother offered to work for a school as a cleaner in exchange for his school fees. [9] [10] He would later be ranked as the number 13 chess player in Nigeria. [10]

Onakoya got a diploma in computer science at Yaba College of Technology where he was a gold medalist representing the school in Nigeria Polytechnic Games and also at the RCCG Chess Championship. He has also won the National Friends of Chess and the Chevron Chess Open. [10]

Onakoya was featured in CNN African Voices. [11] [12]

Onakoya is a board member of the New York City-based non-profit The Gift of Chess. [13]

On 20 April 2024, Onakoya broke the world chess marathon record in New York, United States. He played for over 60 consecutive hours. [14]

Chess in Slums Africa

To Tunde, Chess is more than a game, it gives him his constant identity: “Finding chess gave me something. It gave me an identity, an intellectual one, and it made me believe that I could also be intellectually inclined, and it made me believe that I could also be a thinker. That through just this game, I could find my place in the world again,” said Onakoya on his discovery of Chess during a speaking event in Germany. [15]

In September 2018, [16] Chess in Slums Africa started as a volunteer driven non-profit organization that aims to empower young ones in impoverished communities through chess. [17] [18]

Chess in Slums Africa partnered with Chess.com in September 2020 as an educational tool for classrooms, chess clubs, and parents. [18]

As of June 2021, Chess in Slums Africa had trained over 200 children and got lifelong scholarships for 20 of them. [19]

In May 2021, Ferdinand, a 10-year-old boy with cerebral palsy won the chess tournament in Makoko. [20] [21] [22] He later met and competed with Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos State. [23]

Guinness World Record

The chess marathon was held in Times Square, New York City, United States. He began with the goal of surpassing the previous world record of 56 hours, 9 minutes, and 37 seconds, set by Norwegian players Hallvard Haug Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad in 2018. Onakoya's initial target was to play for 58 hours, but he pushed the boundaries even further, extending the marathon to a full 60 hours. [24] [25] [26] [27]

A Mission Beyond Chess

Onakoya's endeavor was not solely for the purpose of breaking records; it was a mission with a profound cause. He aimed to raise US$1 million for the education of children in Africa, particularly those without access to quality education. [28] [29] While he was trying to set a new record, he got support from Nigerian community in New York, former vice president of Nigeria Yemi Osinbajo, along with Kashim Shettima, including appearances by Afrobeats stars like Davido and Adekunle Gold. [30] [31] [32] [33]

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References

  1. ↑ O'Neill, Natalie (2024-04-19). "Nigerian chess whiz stays up more than 50 hours playing in Times Square to break world record" . Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  2. ↑ Admin 2 (2024-04-20). "JUST IN: Tunde Onakoya breaks world record for longest chess marathon". Champion Newspapers LTD. Retrieved 2024-04-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ "Tunde Onakoya: Launching Stars Through Chess". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 2021-06-27. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  4. ↑ "How chess is changing children's lives". BBC News. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  5. ↑ He helps Nigerian kids turn chess moves into scholarships - CNN Video, 23 August 2021, retrieved 2021-12-24
  6. ↑ Aisha Salaudeen and Yvonne Kasera (3 November 2021). "Chess coaches in Africa are building the next generation of grandmasters". CNN. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  7. ↑ "How chess became an escape for children living in a Nigerian slum". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  8. ↑ Deinde-Sanya, Oluwadunsin (2021-05-24). "Through "ChessinSlums", Tunde Onakoya is Changing the Lives of Children One Piece at a Time". BellaNaija. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  9. ↑ ""My Mum Worked As A Cleaner to Send Me to School" - Onakoya". Nigeria Info FM. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  10. 1 2 3 "Chess Saved My Life — Man Like Tunde Onakoya". Zikoko!. 2021-09-26. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  11. ↑ "Two chess masters feature on CNN African Voices". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 2021-08-20. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  12. ↑ African chess players are making moves for their communities - CNN Video, 23 August 2021, retrieved 2021-12-24
  13. ↑ "The Gift of Chess goes global". www.fide.com. International Chess Federation. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  14. ↑ Aradi, Gloria; Howard, Jacqueline (20 April 2024). "Tunde Onakoya: Nigerian breaks chess marathon record". BBC News. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  15. ↑ Olujobi, Bethel (2024-04-19). "Who is Tunde Onakoya? Nigerian chess master, coach and founder". Businessday NG. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  16. ↑ "Chess Offers Nigerian Slum Children New Move". Channels Television. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  17. ↑ Welle (www.dw.com), Deutsche, 'Chess in Slums' gets Nigerian kids playing for keeps | DW | 17.09.2021 , retrieved 2021-12-24
  18. 1 2 Chess.com (News). "Chess.com Partners With Chess In Slums-Africa". Chess.com. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  19. ↑ "Children In Nigeria's Slum Are Finding Solace Through Chess". HumAngle Media. 2021-12-16. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  20. ↑ From slum to Chess champion: Meet 10-year-old Chess prodigy from Earth's largest slum, Makoko, 17 June 2021, retrieved 2021-12-24
  21. ↑ [EXCLUSIVE] The Story Of A Cerebral Palsy Chess Prodigy, Maumo Ferdinard, 28 June 2021, retrieved 2021-12-24
  22. ↑ Parodi (Alessandro_Parodi), Alessandro (3 June 2021). "Nigerian Child With Cerebral Palsy Becomes Chess Superstar". Chess.com. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  23. ↑ "ICYMI: Sanwo-Olu meets boy who turned chess champion despite cerebral palsy". TheCable Lifestyle. 2021-06-17. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
  24. ↑ Okechukwu, Rejoice (2024-04-20). "Nigerian chess master, Tunde Onakoya, breaks GWR's longest chess marathon". Peoples Gazette Nigeria. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  25. ↑ "Nigerian Chess Master Tunde Onakoya Shows Resilience in Times Square Marathon". Nigerian Bulletin. 2024-04-19. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  26. ↑ Gloria Aradi & Jacqueline Howard (2024-04-19). "Tunde Onakoya: Nigerian breaks chess marathon record". BBC. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  27. ↑ Browning, Oliver (2024-04-20). "Nigerian chess champion plays for marathon 58 hours to break record in Times Square". Yahoo News. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  28. ↑ Presse, AFP-Agence France. "Nigerian Tunde Onakoya Breaks Record For Longest Chess Marathon". www.barrons.com. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  29. ↑ "Chess champion plays for marathon 58 hours to break record - and raise cash for child education". Sky News. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  30. ↑ MINCHILLO, CHINEU ASADU and JOHN. "A Nigerian chess champion plays the royal game for 60 hours — a new global chess record". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. ISSN   1539-7459 . Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  31. ↑ Onuh, Chioma (2024-04-17). "Osinbajo backs Onakoya's 58-hour chess marathon Guinness World Record attempt". Businessday NG. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  32. ↑ Itodo, Sunny Green (2024-04-19). "Guinness World Record: Davido drums support for Nigerian chess master, Tunde Onakoya". Daily Post Nigeria. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
  33. ↑ Omidiji, Rachael (2024-04-19). "GWR: Davido, Adekunle Gold, other celebrities support Tunde Onakoya in New York". Tribune Online. Retrieved 2024-04-20.
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