Tanitoluwa Adewumi became the 28th youngest person in the US to earn the National Chess Master Title.
The boy, nicknamed Tani, achieved the highest ranking according to the US Chess Federation.
His outstanding capacities for chess helped him and his family, Nigerian refugees, to move out of their homeless shelter in New York City.
The 10-year-old said that he’s very happy to have won and got this title and he really loves that it finally happened.
Tani Works Hard Every Day
The boy explained that he practices chess on the daily after he comes home from school, around 10 or 11 hours.
His next goal is to become the youngest grandmaster in chess in the world. He will be 11 this summer so he’s under two years to take the title from Sergey Karjakin.
The first time Tani was recognized happened in 2019 after he won at the New York state championship in chess for his age group.
This achievement came a year after he learned how to play chess in school while residing with his family in a shelter.
Unfortunately, his family was unable to pay for the membership at the school’s chess program; however, his teacher decided to waive the fees.
Many others also stepped in and showed their support to Tani.
The talented boy had a GoFundMe page set up by his dad and managed to raise $254,448 and enabled them to get proper housing and purchase other necessities.
In only a day, the boy’s life was changed. Thanks to generous people and supporters, he and his family got housing, education, and other resources.
What Are Tani’s Future Plans?
Currently, the boy is working to write a book that will be titled My Name Is Tani…and I Believe in Miracles.
What’s more, this book was given the green light for a movie adaptation by Paramount with Trevor Noah as the producer.
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