Samuel Sevian is an American chess player who holds the title of Grandmaster, the highest title a chess player can achieve. He was born on December 26, 2000 in Corning, New York and learned to play chess from his father when he was five years old. Sevian became the world's youngest International Master in history in 2013 at the age of 12.
In November 2014, Sevian became the youngest American ever and one of the youngest in the world to qualify for the Grandmaster title at age 13. He has been playing in high-level tournaments since he was a child, and he has represented the United States in international competitions, winning a gold medal at the World Youth Chess Championships in 2012. He also took home the gold at the 2017 North American Junior Championship. Subsequently, in June 2018, he won the American Continental Chess Championship.
His prominent achievement was winning the 2019 Spring Chess Classic Group A edition, a round-robin tournament which is considered one of the strongest in the U.S. He also studies at the University of Missouri, Columbia where he is a member of the university's chess team.
Sevian's career is supported by the Kasparov Chess Foundation, being a member of the Young Stars Program, which seeks to train young American chess players who show great promise.