An 8-year-old boy’s victory as New York state chess champion will be his family’s ticket out of a homeless shelter.
The New York Times reported that Tani Adewumi won the state chess title for his age group this month even though he learned to play only about a year ago.
8-year-old Tani Adewumi is a chess champion that’s well on his way to mastering the difficult game. What’s even more remarkable is his story. He and his family have been living in a NYC homeless shelter since fleeing Nigeria two years ago. pic.twitter.com/K6zPHoZf3m
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) March 19, 2019
Tani and his family have lived in a New York City shelter since fleeing Nigeria in 2017.
The family feared attacks by the militant group Boko Haram on Christians like themselves.
Tani’s chess coach Russell Makofsky set up a GoFundMe account for the family after Tani won the championship.
READ: PHOTOS: Chief Bisi Akande, Bola Tinubu meet Buhari
Makofsky joined Tani on NBC’s “Today” show Tuesday and said that thanks to donations, the family is moving into an apartment.
Tani says he “felt surprised” by his win.
