IT’S OFFICIAL: Tunde Onakoya is world record holder for longest chess marathon

Tunde Onakoya has officially been certified by Guinness World Records (GWR) for setting a new chess marathon record of 64 hours.

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Onakoya, alongside his chess partner Shawn Martinez (Puerto Rico), surpassed the previous record of 61 hours, 3 minutes, and 34 seconds, held by Norwegian players Hallvard Haug Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad since June 2024.

The non-stop chess marathon began on April 17 and concluded on April 20 in New York’s Times Square, after originally targeting a 70-hour session.

Celebrating his achievement on social media, the founder of Chess in Slums Africa shared photos of the historic feat.

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“We did the impossible and gave the world something new to believe in. Official record holders of the Longest Chess Marathon for 64 hours. We did it,” he captioned the post.

“The longest chess marathon was achieved by Tunde Onakoya (Nigeria) and Shawn Martinez (Puerto Rico) in Times Square, New York, USA, from 17 to 20 April 2025,” the certificate reads.

This isn’t Onakoya’s first attempt; he previously completed a 60-hour chess marathon in April 2024.

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The feat surpassed the 56-hour set in 2018 by Norwegians Hallvard Haug Flatebø and Sjur Ferkingstad.

But the record wasn’t officially recognized at the time.

Chess in Slums Africa is a non-profit organisation known for using the game as a framework to promote education and raise champions from low-income communities.

The Nigerian chess master previously disclosed that he grew up in the slums and that playing chess allowed him to discover his potential.

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