8-Year-Old Chess Prodigy Living in Shelter Finally off of the Streets
By financial measures, director Steven Zaillian’s 1993 family-friendly film “Searching for Bobby Fischer” wasn’t a success. According to IMDb, it cost $12 million to make and only brought in $7 million at the box office.
However, the movie became something of a cult classic — and for ample reason. It’s a coming-of-age, feel-good film with an underdog protagonist and lots of heart.
All of those elements that have caused the movie to endure over the years have come together in a real-life story. And just like “Searching for Bobby Fischer,” it ends on a happy note.
According to People, an eight-year-old Nigerian immigrant Tanitoluwa (“Tani”) Adewumi left his home country in 2017 and fled to the United States. His family feared for their safety in the wake of attacks by the terrorist group Boko Haram.
Fortunately, they made it to New York, where they received asylum. Unfortunately, they didn’t have anywhere to live.
The Adewumi family ended up staying in a homeless shelter. The New York Times reported that Tani ended up enrolling in a local public school.
Meet the 8 year old Nigerian kid who won the New York State Chess Championship
Tani Adewunmi is his name pic.twitter.com/qENGh8c67O
— Nwaeze Emmanuel (@manuelkachi) March 20, 2019
While there, he had a teacher named Shawn Martinez who taught Tani’s entire class how to play chess. And Tani liked it so much that he begged his parents to let him join the school chess club.
Unfortunately, the family couldn’t afford the club fee, but the school ended up comping it for Tani — and it’s a good thing they did. Little did anyone know that they had a chess prodigy on their hands.
Though he started at the lowest numerical rating in the game, he soon surged ahead, showing real talent. “He is so driven,” Martinez said.
“He does 10 times more chess puzzles than the average kid. He just wants to be better.”
And better he became. A little more than a year after learning how to play the game, Tani won the 52nd New York State Scholastic Championships tournament.
He outplayed other students who had significantly more experience and the help of one-on-one tutors. Jane Hsu, the principal of Tani’s school, said, “It’s an inspiring example of how life’s challenges do not define a person.”
It looks as though Tani will soon face fewer challenges, too. According to the New York Times, a GoFundMe campaign brought in more than $200,000 for his family. Multiple people offered them free housing.
Now a trio of film companies all want to make movies about Tani. However, the young boy has other plans.
“I want to be the youngest grandmaster,” he said. He also praised his new adopted land.
“The U.S. is a dream country,” he proclaimed. “Thank God I live in the greatest city in the world, which is New York, New York.”
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