10 Year Old Tanitoluwa Adewumi Becomes America’s Newest Chess Master

Tanitoluwa Adewumi, a once-homeless Christian refugee in New York City who fled persecution with his family from Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram in Nigeria, is now America’s newest national chess master at the age of 10. And he and his family are thanking God for the achievement.

“Our God has done it again today. Tanitoluwa won Chess Club of Fairfield Connecticut championship,” the prodigy’s father, Kayode Adewumi, announced earlier this month in a post on Facebook showing his son, affectionately called Tani, gleefully holding two trophies. Earning that win on May 1 gave the 10-year-old his newest chess ranking.

A statement from the U.S. Chess Federation said Tani’s achievement at 10 years, seven months, and 28 days makes him the 28th youngest person to become a national chess master. Tani, who had to defeat another national chess master and an international master to achieve his latest ranking, said he is “very happy” about the achievement.

“I’m very happy that I won and that I got the title. I’m very happy with myself. I really love that I finally got it,” he said in a recent interview.