Reshevsky Samuel is an American chess grandmaster according to the version of the International Chess Association, a fifteen-time United States chess champion (1936-1944, 1946-1948, 1969-1972), a multiple contender for the title of world champion in the first half of the 20th century, the most famous chess prodigy the planet.
Samuel Reshevsky: biography of a chess player
Reshevsky was born on November 26, 1911 in the city of Ozorkow (Poland), previously located on the territory of the Russian Empire. Samuel grew up in a modest Jewish family, where he was the sixth child in a row. Being very young, Reshevsky began to learn chess. At two years old, he boldly moved pieces on a chessboard, playing with his father. At the age of four, having completely mastered the rules of the game and its nuances, he began to battle the strongest chess players in his city. When the family moved to the city of Lodz, the famous Polish grandmaster Georg Salve noticed the chess talents of young Samuel. From now on, the little prodigy trains with the strongest masters and takes an active part in the city chess championships.
Reshevsky’s debut on the international stage took place at the age of six, when he had the chance to take part in a chess tournament in Vienna (Austria). Samuel's rivals were the strongest world masters who, with obvious emotion, sat down at the chess table, not doubting their victory. However, the thoughts about the insolvency of the young boy immediately grew into rage and bewilderment - the child beat every opponent. One of the participants in the tournament - the strongest Viennese chess master Wolf burned with sports anger, wanting to beat the boy. Before the game with Reshevsky, he said “Such tricks will not work against me!”, But he was also out of work - the boy confidently matted his king. The next chess exam was against Slovenian grandmaster Milan Widmar, where in a difficult fight, six-year-old Samuel was defeated. The boy fought worthily for several hours, while he stood on his knees the whole game, because due to his still short stature, he could not fully sit at the chess table.
Samuel Reshevsky: chess prodigy
Giving all his free time to the game, the boy did not receive school education, he was clearly inferior in intellectual horizons to his peers. At the age of eight, Samuel passed a general children's test, the results of which showed that the child does not see the difference between a gorilla and a lion. All these shortcomings were compensated by the fact that Reshevsky, as a child, could easily solve a difficult puzzle, which is impossible even for some adults. In combination with chess talent, without undue flattery and hypocrisy, he was called a child prodigy.
Remembering his childhood, Samuel Reshevsky argued that at the age of six, chess for him became a kind of life breath, feasible at a reflex level without the need for conscious effort.
The early international fame of Samuel Reshevsky
The child’s chess talent developed rapidly and progressively, and already in 1920 Reshevsky Samuel went on a world chess tour. A nine-year-old man managed to demonstrate his chess skills in Paris, London, Vienna and Berlin. In each city, Samuel became a real hero, fighting gray-bearded opponents. The perplexed audience escorted the young talent with an abundance of applause and applause. Everyone could not imagine how such a small chess player is able to beat world masters and grandmasters. During the “chess” journey, Reshevsky Samuel spent 23 games, 4 of which ended in a draw, and the rest with confident victories.
Eight-year-old versus experienced chess lovers
Watching Sammy’s successes, parents began to realize that the child’s talents could bring big money to the family. In 1921, the family moved to the United States, where very soon parents organize a chess tour within the country. For about two years, Reshevsky travels to cities in the United States and proves that he has no equal behind a chessboard. Once, a young Sammy had a chance to play against the best chess players of the Military Academy, where he was a triumph in 19 games out of 20 played.
In addition, the child prodigy held simultaneous games in theaters and shopping centers in several states. In 1922, the boy took part in the tournament of the masters, where he fought with the grandmaster David Yanovsky, the party ended with the victory of Reshevsky.
