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 (TAH�-nee ah-deh-WOO�-mee) won the state chess title for his age group this month even though he learned to play only about a year ago.

Tani and his family have lived in a New York City shelter since fleeing Nigeria in 2017. The Christian family feared attacks by the militant group Boko Haram.

Tani�s chess coach Russell Makofsky (muh-KAHF�-skee) set up a GoFundMe account for the family after Tani won the championship.

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.

(AP)