- By Halimah Olamide
Nigerian chess master, Tunde Onakoya, has announced his plan to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon, “for the dreams of millions of children across Africa without access to education.”
Onakoya disclosed this in a post on his X handle on Friday, revealing that he will attempt to play chess for 58 hours without losing a game.
The event is scheduled to take place from 10am on April 17 to 8pm on April 19 in Times Square, New York City.
He wrote, “On the 17th of April 2024, I will attempt to break the Guiness World record for the longest chess marathon in the heart of Times Square, New York City, for 58 hours without losing a game.
Onakoya further solicited the support of Nigerians, urging them to come forward and show the “unwavering” Nigerian spirit.
“You guys have been rock solid for me through the years, so I need all of us to come together now more than ever to show the world that the Nigerian spirit is unwavering and we can do great things from a small place against all odds,” he wrote.
Onakoya is the founder of Chess in Slums Africa, an organisation that aims at providing mentorship and unlocking the potential of underprivileged children using chess educational resources.
According to the Guinness World Records, the longest chess marathon for 56 hours, 09 minutes, 37 seconds was achieved by Hallvard Haug Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad from Norway on November 11, 2018.