Nigerian chess master Tunde Onakoya, who is attempting to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon at 58 hours, has played continuously for 16 hours and remains undefeated in all his matches.
The event, taking place at New York City’s Times Square, began on Wednesday, April 17, and will conclude on April 19. So far, Onakoya has triumphed in every game, including a match against New York’s National Chess Master Shawn Martinez.
In a post on Onakoya’s social media, he celebrated his victory over Martinez, praising him as one of New York’s best players.
Onakoya’s manager, Taiwo (X handle “OgaBoxx”), shared details about the challenge, explaining that after 15 hours of play with 12 opponents, Onakoya took an accumulated 30-minute break, as allowed under the rules of a five-minute break per hour of play.
Onakoya is playing two sets of games simultaneously and must remain unbeaten in both. Only his match against Martinez counts towards the Guinness World Record attempt.
The event has drawn substantial support from Nigerians abroad who are cheering on Onakoya. He has also received encouraging messages from notable Nigerian figures such as Vice President Kashim Shettima, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, PDP presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, and Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
The US Mission Nigeria and the UK in Nigeria have also sent their best wishes to Onakoya via their social media platforms.
