Onakoya admits grappling with food poisoning during chess marathon

Tunde Onakoya, the new Guinness World Record holder for the longest unbroken chess marathon, has revealed that he contracted food poisoning during his record-breaking campaign.

Onakoya's 58-hour quest to set the Guinness World Record for the longest unbroken chess marathon began on Wednesday, April 17, at 10 a.m. in Times Square, New York, and finished around 12:40 a.m. on Saturday.

The Nigerian chess master entered the marathon with the goal of raising $1 million for children's education in Africa.

He had planned to play the royal game for 58 hours, but he proceeded till 12:40am on Saturday, breaking the previous chess marathon record of 56 hours, nine minutes, and 37 seconds set in 2018 by Norwegians Hallvard Haug Flatebo and Sjur Ferkingstad.

During the record-breaking marathon game, Onakoya competed against Shawn Martinez, an American chess champion, in accordance with Guinness World Records criteria, which require two players to play continuously for the entire length.

Despite encountering health issues during the marathon, such as severe vomiting and abdominal discomfort, Onakoya remained determined. When given the option of quitting, he replied, "I will play on for the dreams of millions of children." His determination has sparked enormous sympathy, with online fans and onlookers at the scene rooting him on.

For every hour of play, Onakoya and his opponent received only a five-minute rest.
In his post on his X handle, the 29-year-old wrote that he suffered food poisoning that prevented him from eating.

“Catching up on social media now and I’ve constantly fought back tears,” he tweeted.

“Love you guys very much. I’ll do a proper post when I get the right words to express all of the emotions I feel right now.

“Let me delve into this jollof rice for now. It’s my first meal in almost four days. I had food poisoning during the marathon so I couldn’t eat anything at all, just water.”

Onakoya is well known in Nigeria, where he launched the Chess in Slums project in 2018 in Ikorodu, on the outskirts of Lagos.

The organisation offers often-marginalised young people, many of whom are not in school and work to help their families, a space to learn to play chess.