11 Young Prodigies Who Achieved Extraordinary Feats Before Turning 11

Prepare to be amazed (or perhaps a bit embarrassed?) by these 11 astonishing child prodigies who accomplished incredible things in art, mathematics, and more, all before reaching their teenage years.

1. Judit Polgar // Chess Grandmaster

Hungarian chess legend Judit Polgar, born in 1976, began competing in tournaments at just 6 years old. By age 11, she had already defeated her first grandmaster, Vlatko Kovacevic. She went on to become the greatest female chess player of all time, earning her grandmaster title at 15 in 1991—then the youngest ever. This record has since been surpassed by Abhimanyu Mishra, a 12-year-old from New Jersey, who became the youngest grandmaster in history at 12 years, 4 months, and 25 days.

2. Willie Mosconi // Billiards Champion

At just 6 years old and standing on a box, Willie Mosconi faced off in an exhibition match against the reigning world billiards champion in front of a packed audience. Though he lost, the match earned him significant attention. By 11, in 1924, Mosconi was the juvenile champion and regularly performed popular trick shot exhibitions. He earned the nickname 'Mr. Pocket Billiards' and won 15 World Straight Pool Championships—the most by any player. He also served as Paul Newman's pool mentor for the actor's role in 'The Hustler' (1961).

3. Priyanshi Somani // Human Calculator

Indian mental math prodigy Priyanshi Somani, born in 1998, won the overall title at the Mental Calculation World Cup in 2010 when she was just 11. Her specialty? Calculating square roots of six-digit numbers up to eight significant digits (Somani clinched first place). She also shone in other categories at the tournament, including adding 10 numbers with 10 digits each and multiplying two eight-digit numbers, where she took second in both events. And yes, her competitors were all adults.

4. Blaise Pascal // Mathematician

French polymath Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), a mathematician, physicist, and philosopher, wrote a treatise on vibrating bodies at just 9 years old and crafted his first proof on a wall with coal at age 11. He is best known for Pascal's Theorem, which he proposed at 16. Additionally, Pascal invented the mechanical calculator.

5. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart // Composer

Austrian composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) is the epitome of a child prodigy. He started playing the harpsichord at age 3 and performed his first musical piece just three days before his fifth birthday. He composed his first original work at age 5, and at 6, he set off on a three-and-a-half-year European tour with his father and older sister, Anna Maria (also known as Nannerl), who was a musical prodigy in her own right on the harpsichord and piano.

6. Kim Ung-Yong // Actual Genius

Korean mega-genius Kim Ung-Yong, born in 1962, was able to hold full conversations at just six months old, read in Japanese, Korean, German, and English by age 4, and solve complex calculus problems by the time he turned 5. Between the ages of 3 and 6, he attended university physics courses. At one point, Guinness World Records recognized Kim as having the world's highest IQ, estimated to be over 210.

7. Pablo Picasso // Artist

Spanish artist Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) displayed his artistic talents from a very young age. His mother (as mothers often do) claimed that his first words were 'piz, piz'—short for 'lapis,' the Spanish word for 'pencil.' However, there is also more objective evidence of his remarkable abilities: Picasso drew 'Picador' at just 8 years old.

8. Anna Paquin // Actor

Born in Canada in 1982, Anna Paquin won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her debut role in 'The Piano' when she was only 11. Since then, she has earned numerous other accolades, including a Golden Globe for 'True Blood.'

9. Wayne Gretzky // Hockey Player

Ice hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky, born in 1961, was already playing against 10-year-olds when he was just 6. The gear designed for older kids was too big for the small Gretzky, who tucked his jersey into his pants on the right side—a habit he maintained throughout his illustrious career. At 10, he astonishingly scored 378 goals and made 139 assists in a single season.

10. John Stuart Mill // Economist and Philosopher

British philosopher John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) mastered Greek by age 3 and had already read all of Herodotus's Histories and was well-versed in Plato's Dialogues by the time he turned 8. By age 10, he was proficient in Latin and had read most of the key works of major Roman philosophers, all in their original Latin, of course.

11. Gregory Smith // Nobel Peace Prize Nominee

American prodigy Gregory Smith, born in 1990, could memorize and recite books by 14 months and was already adding numbers at 18 months. He advanced from second to eighth grade in just one year and began high school at 7, graduating with honors two years later. At 10, he entered Randolph-Macon College, majoring in mathematics with minors in history and biology before continuing with his master's at the University of Virginia. As a pre-teen, he became an advocate for children's rights globally. Smith has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize at least five times.