Tunde Onakoya: National Master and Blitz Warrior
National Master Tunde Onakoya, known online as giftedhandz31, is a relentless blitz chess competitor. His online career has been built on fast play, with nearly 2,800 rated blitz games and a record of 1,400 wins, 1,267 losses, and 99 draws.
He reached a career-high 2355 (2020-07-02) in July 2020. Since the mid-2010s his blitz strength has climbed from the 1600s into the 2200s, with his most explosive rise coming during his busiest seasons.
Opening Repertoire
Onakoya is a committed 1.e4 player, and his database reveals a deep connection to the French Defense. As Black he has played more than 200 games in the French Exchange and won 55 percent of them. With White he enjoys the offbeat Bird Opening: Dutch Variation, Batavo Gambit, where he has scored 52 percent across 265 games. He also handles the Scandinavian Defense and the Sicilian Defense with practical confidence.
Playing Style and Habits
- An endgame battler: about 78 percent of his games reach the endgame, and his decisive games often last more than 70 moves.
- Rarely resigns early, with an early resignation rate just above one percent.
- Crushing against lower-rated opposition with a 64 percent win rate, while still beating equal-rated opponents 55 percent of the time.
- A true night owl, posting his best winning percentage at 03:00.
Rivalries and Longevity
No opponent has tested Onakoya more often than menage-a-64, with 22 meetings and a narrow Onakoya edge of 11 wins. His longest winning streak stands at 11 games, and his 85 percent comeback rate shows he is rarely beaten until the final move. For Tunde Onakoya, the blitz clock is just another reason to keep fighting.