Nigerian Chess Master Raises Over $100k For Charity By Playing Chess In Times Square For 60 Hours Straight

When you go to Times Square in New York City, you expect to see lots of tourists and gigantic digital advertisements that will stimulate more than a double shot of espresso.

But rarely do you ever walk by and find a guy who’s trying to break a world record by playing a game of chess. This week, you would have had the opportunity to witness that.

Come to think of it, if you had been in Times Square at any point since noon on Wednesday, you would have had a chance to witness history.

29-year-old Tunde Onakoya broke the Guinness World Record for the longest continuous chess game on Friday evening, after reaching the 60-hour mark in Times Square. The previous record was 56 hours, 9 minutes and 37 seconds, set in 2018 by Hallvard Haug Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad. 

Onakoya’s goal was to raise $1 million for his charity "Chess in Slums Africa," which has the goal of teaching "the game to children from poor communities and helps them with their education."

Onakoya's Marathon Was Incredible In Every Sense

Can we take a minute to recognize how impressive that is? I can barely stay focused for one game of chess, probably because I always lose. 

But even if I were playing a game that I enjoyed (I am known in my neck of the woods for being a Yahtzee legend) I wouldn’t dream of playing for more than one, maybe two hours straight.

Despite not being able to sleep and living off a diet of water and jollof rice (a traditional African dish), Onakoya was mentally sharp from start to finish. The spectators who signed up to play against him ranged from American chess champion Shawn Martinez to a New York Post reporter, all of whom were no match for his genius.

: Tunde Onakoya, Nigerian professional chess player, speaks at the Digital Life Design (DLD) innovation conference in Bavaria, Munich, on January 11, 2024. (Photo by Matthias Balk/picture alliance via Getty Images)

"It’s like playing against Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant, you’re starstruck," said Bernard Chong, a Filipino angel investor. "I made a small mistake and he pounced."

Onakoya said the early morning hours on Friday were the hardest for him to push through. But he found a way to make it past the late shift and power his way to the finish.

"Around 4 a.m. this morning was the hardest struggle, just to stay awake. But I’ve pushed past that hurdle and the rest is just a matter of tenacity," he said. "I think I can see it through to the very end from here."

Onakoya also got a shout-out from Nigerian vice president Kashim Shettima before he began his marathon.

He fell short of his fundraising goal, but still got over $109,000. Not a bad return for three days straight of playing chess!