Tobias Sylvester
Nigerian chess master, Tunde Onakoya has surpassed the previous 56-hour chess marathon record amd is now setting his sights on reaching a remarkable 60-hour milestone.
Announcing this achievement on his social media platforms, Onakoya expressed his unwavering determination to hit the 60-hour mark, driven by his passion to support the education of African children on a global scale.
Onakoya shared his accomplishment via a post on his official X account, stating, “We have done it. We’re pushing to 60 hours guys. We’re not stopping yet. Let’s keep going..”
“We have a fundraising goal to meet for the education of African children around the world. This is our why – the reason we are doing this.
“Let’s demonstrate to the world the incredible power of love. Together, we can make this happen.”
Tunde Onakoya broke the record of Norwegian players Hallvard Haug Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad, who played for 56-hour, 9-minute in 2018 and aimed at reaching 58 hours target.
The new record holder said his motivation for this marathon is to raise funds and awareness for providing educational opportunities to underprivileged children across Africa.
In a previous statement by the Chess in Slums Africa Foundation, Tunde Onakoya announced that he would participate in this record attempt with his US counterpart, Shawn Martinez.
It read in part, “This record attempt requires a team of two players. Tunde Onakoya (NG) will be facing off against Shawn Martinez (US) for the challenge. Both players hold the title of National Masters.
“Shawn Martinez, a US National Master, renowned New York City chess legend, and chess coach, poses as a formidable adversary. Both Tunde Onakoya and Shawn Martinez will hold the record title.”
“This record is for the longest time to continuously play chess. This record is to be mentioned in hours, minutes, and seconds. This record is to be attempted by a team of two players,” it added.
Martinez joined the challenge after approximately 23 hours of play, solidifying their bid for the new world record.
Through his foundation, “Chess in Slums Africa,” Onakoya aims to raise $1 million to support underprivileged children worldwide, emphasizing the transformative power of education.
As of Saturday morning, Tunde Onakoya has raised nearly $100,000 in donations.
He said his foundation wanted to give children “access to education so they can get to understand and know their own potential, because that’s the greatest gift you can ever give to anyone.”
“We’ve been able to raise 100,000 dollars so far,” he said.
“It’s a hurdle,” he said. “We are not giving up yet,” Onakoya said, insisting on his drive to raise more funds for Chess in Slums Africa’s projects.
Meanwhile, Nigerians, including President Bola Tinubu, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Singer Davido, and Adekunle Gold, have all shown support for Onakoya to break the new record.
