Rukshin at 15 was a troubled russian kid with drink and violence, then a miracle happened: He fell in love with Math and turned all his creative, aggressive, and competitive energies toward it.
He tried to compete in Math olympiads, but outmatched by peers. Still he believed he knew how to win; he just could not do it himself.
He formed a team of schoolchildren a year younger than he and trained them.
At 19 he became an IMO coach who produced Perelman (Gold IMO & Fields/Clay Poincare Conjecture). In the decades since, his students took 70 IMO, include > 40 Golds.
Rukshin’s thoughts on IMO:
1. IMO is more like a sport. It has its coaches, clubs, practice sessions, competitions.
2. Natural ability is necessary but NOT sufficientfor success: The talented kid needs to have the right coach, the right team, the right kind of family…
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