Nigerian chess champ plays royal game for 60 hrs
NEW YORK—A Nigerian chess champion and child education advocate played chess nonstop for 60 hours in New York City’s Times Square to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.
Tunde Onakoya, 29, hopes to raise $1 million for children’s education across Africa through the record attempt that began on Wednesday.
He had set out to play the royal game for 58 hours but continued until he reached 60 hours at about 12:40 a.m. Saturday, surpassing the current chess marathon record of 56 hours, 9 minutes and 37 seconds, achieved in 2018 by Norwegians Hallvard Haug
Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad.
e Guinness World Record organization has yet to publicly comment about Onakoya’s attempt. It sometimes takes weeks for the organization to confirm any new record.
Onakoya played against Shawn Martinez, an American chess champion, in line with Guinness World Record guidelines that any attempt to break the record must be made by two players who would play continuously for the entire duration.
Support had been growing online and at the scene, where a blend of African music kept onlookers and supporters entertained amid cheers and applause. Among the dozens who cheered Onakoya on at the scene was Nigerian music star Davido.
e record attempt is “for the dreams of millions of children across Africa without access to education,” said Onakoya, who founded Chess in Slums Africa in 2018. e organization wants to support the education of at least 1 million children in slums across the continent.
“My energy is at 100 percent right now because my people are here supporting me with music,” Onakoya said ursday evening after the players crossed the 24-hour mark.
On Onakoya’s menu: Lots of water and jollof rice, one of West Africa’s best-known dishes.
For every hour of game played, Onakoya and his opponent got only five minutes’ break. e breaks were sometimes grouped together, and Onakoya used them to catch up with Nigerians and New Yorkers cheering him on. He even joined in with their dancing sometimes.