As Nigerian Tunde Onakoya is once again bringing the name of the country in a positive way on the global limelight by trying to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon in New York, USA, he has continued to receive more accolades from Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora.
The Lagos State Sports Commission (LSSC) joined the supporters of Onakoya, who is currently playing his game in the open air in Manhattan.
The management of the LSSC says in a Facebook post that “We are rooting for you as you break the Guiness World Record for the longest Marathon in Chess.”
As at the time of going to press, the Nigeria’s Chess prodigy Tunde Onakoya, is almost at the halfway mark of his attempt to break the world record and give the proceeds to the cause of bringing chess to children across the world.
The current Guinness World record for the longest chess marathon stands at 56 hours, 9 minutes, and 37 seconds and was set by Hallvard Haug Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad of Norway on November 11, 2018.
Onakoya’s record chassing chess marathon started 0n 17 April at 10am in Times Square, New York, and is scheduled to conclude at 8pm on 19 April.
Independent News Express reports that Onakoya is a Nigerian chess master, coach and founder of Chess in Slums Africa. He has organized a number of interventions for children across slums in Lagos state including Majidun (Ikorodu), Makoko and recently, Oshodi. The children are engaged in a two-week session that seeks to unlock their potential through the game of chess while learning to read, write and acquire basic literacy skills.
It would be recalled that Onakoya learned to play chess at a barber’s shop in a slum in Ikorodu, Lagos where he grew up. 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. He would later be ranked as the number 13 chess player in Nigeria.
Onakoya got a diploma in computer science at Yaba College of Technology where he was a gold medalist representing the school in the Nigeria Polytechnic Games and also at the RCCG Chess Championship. He has also won the National Friends of Chess and the Chevron Chess Open.
Onakoya, who had once featured in CNN African Voices, is a board member of the New York City-based non-profit The Gift of Chess.
