 Welcome to Viral Stories. Secrets, facts and strange stories from around the world. If you find yourself amazed at what some of our fellow humans and animals can do, this is the place for you. This is a channel you're going to want to tell your friends about. Be sure to subscribe and hit that bell icon to be notified of our new uploads. Now sit back, relax and enjoy Viral Stories. Among many different stories and biographies, stories about geniuses whose abilities manifested themselves in early childhood that no one can explain are by far one of the most interesting ones. Not so many people are aware of what other people might be able to do. Even a five-year-old boy, an average boy at first glance, can surpass grey-haired PhD holders. The discussion about the extent to which we use our brain has been going on for decades. So what is this story about? The story is about a boy named Samuel, who could do something that no one ever could, and trust me, it's worth watching. It all began in Poland in 1911, when a boy Samuel, the sixth child in a poor Jewish family, was born. His life was no different than his siblings, but that didn't stay that way for a long time, actually up until the age of two. The thing is that entertainment and hobbies of the early 20th century weren't that diverse, so his father would often sit at home at the chessboard, playing with family friends in the evening. It is at that moment, Sammy demonstrated interest for this ancient game. Once sitting with his dad, he started moving figures on the chessboard. Of course, the father explained how the figures move to his curious son, but he couldn't imagine then what was going to happen. At a glance, it seemed that Sammy was simply watching his father play chess, oftentimes sitting in his lap. But once at the age of four, he warned his father while he was observing his game with one of his father's friends, that he was going to make a wrong move that would lead to complete defeat. As you might expect, an experienced grown man doubted his son's remark, but decided to test him. After that, he sat his son at the chess table, and in a couple of minutes, he won by making precise moves. Perhaps it's just luck, thought his father, and the next morning decided to play a game of chess with his son. After losing, he decided against giving up and began a new game, but nothing changed. His father couldn't beat him at chess all his life. Undoubtedly, such surprising news spread quickly, but friends didn't believe the father and each came to play a game of chess with the little boy, with the desire to win, but each failed. From that moment, at four years old, the triumph of Samuel Rochevsky began. All of the toughest chess players in his town lost to him. He played so well, there were no partners left for him to play with, and Samuel was only four years old. When he turned five, his family moved to Lusk to help develop boys' abilities, but the situation repeated itself. He skillfully beat everyone, and after that one of the best Polish champions, George Selv, decided to test him. He was astonished when the little genius was able to beat him. It is important to emphasize that in the first quarter of the 20th century, despite the First World War, chess was in great fashion comparable to the popularity of football. People played it everywhere, at home, in halls, in tournaments, parks and on benches. It was a popular and prestigious game. Since by the age of six, his genius in chess was unmatched, and his popularity spread around the world. Many great chess players wanted to teach him a lesson. Thus in 1917, parents took six-year-old Sammy to Vienna, where he impressed the audience with his phenomenal game. His appearance had caused quite a sensation when he took part in a big tournament, or the strongest chess players in the country competed. At first, everyone admired his skills, found his victories cute. What can you say? He's a child. But when he beat everyone in Vienna's chess club one by one, people started to get nervous. People went from finding this little boy in shorts adorable to confusion and eventually hate. They wondered how it was possible that such a small boy beat them, who have been training all their lives. It has been suggested to invite a famous player Wolf to put the boy in his place. He was unbeatable. When he arrived, he was full of enthusiasm to finally beat the boy, but the boy won quickly by using a combination method. The National Chess Club didn't want to leave things as is and invited yet another player, a Slovene player, Milan Vidmar, who later became a Grandmaster. He later said that he began playing with the boy in a relaxed manner, but soon he understood the boy's true potential. The boy knew what he was doing, and it was very weird for the Grandmaster since the boy couldn't even count. Vidmar won, but it was tough and he was limited in his choices. No one knew how much time had passed. The game tired the boy since he had been playing the entire day and had to sit on top of the chair to reach the table. His legs would get numb and at the end of the game, the boy put his head on the table from exhaustion. The room stayed silent after the boy's defeat. The Grandmasters left without saying a word since he understood that his victory was a coincidence. Samuel's genius in chess prevented him from getting basic education. His knowledge was very limited, but he was able to solve riddles and puzzles that no adult could solve. His talents allowed him to be called a wonder kind. At the age of eight, his parents hired a manager for him who was able to organize a tour for him around Europe's capitals to show off his talents. The tour was a success, Berlin, Vienna, Paris, London. People found him astonishing everywhere. His first public appearances was in Berlin in 1920, where he was able to win 16 games out of 20 and 4 draws. Some people admired his talents and others found him demonic. Some players gave up with a smile and some with confusion. At the top of his popularity, his family moved to the USA. In 1921, they went on a two-year tour around the States. People welcomed him. The journalists were especially curious about the game in a military academy. The best chess player was playing against the boy. Sammy won 19 games and one draw. Sammy toured the whole America, visiting many cities and towns. He played chess for show in chess clubs and in supermarkets. One time, more than 3,000 people came to see him play in Philadelphia. People climbed trees to see their idol. Upon his return to New York after a long tour, Sammy was 10 years old. At that time, he took part in a tournament as a master. The boy played with excellence and won all the games. As later Sammy said, he could fall asleep that night and was jumping with excitement around the house. During his last tour, he had 1,500 games with chess players of different levels, including grandmasters. Each time, he played again 40-80 players. Out of 75,000 games, he lost only 8, perhaps only because he was tired. This record remains unmatched. In 1921, Sammy met Charlie Chaplin and taught him how to play chess. Chaplin wrote in his diaries that the boy was nervous when playing with adults. His face turned red then white. He was playing with his health for his success. Time was ticking and the parents realized that this couldn't go on much longer. He had troubles with basic skills that boys of his age excelled at. His career as a chess player ended in 1924. He decided to attend school at the age of 12 for the first time. He stopped playing chess during his studies, but would occasionally play with his dad. At that time, people almost forgot about this wonder kind. No one really knew why he disappeared, that the young genius was simply learning how to read and write. His desire to play chess remained as strong as ever and in 1927, he attended a West Coast tournament, winning it with ease. He once became famous, but he wasn't interested in fame. He wanted to study, so he rejected all the offers that followed. In 1929, Sammy enrolled into Detroit College to study accounting. He became an accountant after finishing the college with excellence. Of course, in different years, he would become eight times winner in the USA, the winner of many international competitions. He played chess as a hobby and never pursued them as a career. Last time Samuel won a tournament was when he was 61 in 1972. In the mid-50s, a new wonder kind appeared, Bobby Fisher. Undoubtedly, people compared them. Rzevskiy didn't see a competitor in Fisher, despite the fact that he became a national champion four times. A group of patrons funded a game between Samuel and Bobby. They finished with a draw after 11 games, but Samuel didn't come for the twelfth game because it was on Saturday and he never played on Saturdays. But later, the matters got interesting. One of the patrons of the game, Jacqueline Pietegorska, requested to change the time of the game to attend a concert of Grigori Pietegorski. Fisher didn't agree, but the time was changed. He didn't show up at the right time, so he lost. Up until the late 80s, Rzevskiy was taking part in tournaments, teaching youngsters tactics and the art of the game. He was playing for his own pleasure. He wanted to live a calm life with his wife in his own house, away from journalists. He passed away in April 1992 at the age of 80. He remained a mystery for the world. He was the best player in 1930 to 1960. No one knows what would have happened if he had decided to pursue chess professionally. Samuel confessed that playing chess was like breathing to him. Try explaining how to breathe and you will understand why I had difficulties explaining my genius. I just played without tiring myself out and I don't understand how it happens. So this is the story. A story about a boy who defeated everyone in this town at the age of four, the whole Europe at the age of six. Can you imagine? Let me know what you think in the comments. What do you think about Sammy? That's it for today. Give the video a thumbs up and see you soon.