Recall the shrewd Nigerian kid who was all the rave in the media after he won the New York State Chess Championships in his category?
Tanitoluwa Adewumi is back on our screens, and this time he has called on all Nigerians to appreciate the game of chess.
According to the eight-year-old, the deep level of thinking required to play chess was what won him over.
“I would say that you [Nigerians] should appreciate the game of chess because what if a lot of people didn’t appreciate football? Would you like that? No! Then you should also appreciate chess.”
— Tanitoluwa (Punch)
About a year ago, the youngster participated in his first chess tournament with the lowest rating of any participant, 105.
Tanitoluwa’s rating is now 1587, and rising fast. According to the New York Times, by comparison, the world’s best player, Magnus Carlsen, has a rating of 2845.
The young Nigerian’s style of player has been described by the NYT as aggressive. During the state championship, Tanitoluwa sacrificed a bishop for a pawn, a move that the coaches watching from the sideline didn’t understand.
They fed the boy’s move to a computer and it agreed with Tanitoluwa, identifying the brilliance and perfect strategy executed by the youngster.
Tanitoluwa wishes to be the youngest grandmaster in the world, and also a pilot.
The wunderkind understands that being a grandmaster is no mean feat, but is however determined to attain it.
“[To become a gandmaster] you have to get three norms and it’s very hard to get three norms because you have to play in tournaments together that have to have three grandmasters from different countries. Also, the time has to be 120 minutes on the clock.”
— Tanitoluwa
Featured image source: Daily Post Nigeria