The Cleverest facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Cleverest
Genre	game show
Based on	Britain's Brainiest Kid
Presented by	Tina Kandelaki (2003–12) Lyudmila Dobrovolskaya (2013)
Composer(s)	Matthew Strachan
Country of origin	Russia  Ukraine
Original language(s)	Russian
No. of seasons	14
No. of episodes	approx. 400
Production
Producer(s)	Alexander Rodnyansky (2003–08) Vyacheslav Murugov Vladimir Oseledchik
Production location(s)	Dovzhenko Film Studios, Kyiv (2003–08) 1, Liza Chaykina Street, Moscow (2008–12)
Camera setup	multi-camera
Running time	85 minutes
Production company(s)	STS (2003–12) 1+1 (2003–08) JSC Kostafilm (2008) OK-Production (2008-12)
Release
Original network	STS (2003–12) 1+1 (2003-08) Inter (2009-12) Ukrayina (2013) K1 (reruns)
Picture format	4:3,
Audio format	mono, stereo
Chronology
Preceded by	Britain's Brainiest Kid

The Cleverest (Russian: Самый Умный, Ukrainian: Найрозумніший) was a popular Russian-Ukrainian TV game show. It was based on the British show Britain's Brainiest Kid.

The show was a big hit, winning the TV contest TEFI multiple times. Tina Kandelaki hosted it from 2003 to 2012. Lyudmila Dobrovolskaya took over in 2013. The first episode aired on March 8, 2003, and the last one on June 23, 2013.

The Cleverest's Club

This club was for the very best players from the show. It included contestants who showed the most knowledge and scored the highest points each season.

The club had different groups, called leagues, based on age:

• Junior League: For students in grades 6 and 7.
• Senior League: For students in grades 8, 9, and 10.
• Gold League: For students in grade 11 and college students.

Each league usually had 48 members.

Game Rules

The game had three exciting rounds. Players had to be quick and smart to win!

Round 1

Twelve players started in this round. They answered questions with four possible choices, but only one was right. The goal was to answer as many questions correctly as possible.

There were 18 questions in total. The six players who answered the most questions correctly moved on to Round 2. If there was a tie, extra questions were asked to decide who moved forward.

Additional Contest

If players were still tied, they played an extra game. They were given four words and had to match them to four categories.

The Decipherer

Before Round 2 and 3, players competed in "The Decipherer." This task helped decide the order in which players would choose topics. Players had to guess a word that was hidden using a number code, like the T9 system on old phones. The faster a player guessed the word, the better their position in the next rounds.

Here's how the numbers matched letters:

Round 2

In Round 2, the six players chose topics from a list. There were 12 topics in total. Once a topic was chosen, no one else could pick it. Players had one minute to answer as many questions as possible on their chosen topic. Each correct answer gave them points. Players chose topics based on their results from "The Decipherer."

The three players with the highest scores moved on to the final round. If there was a tie for the last spot, they played an additional contest, similar to Round 1.

The Final

"The Decipherer" also decided the order for the final round. Players stood at different colored buttons: red, yellow, and blue.

The game board looked like this:

When a player answered a question correctly, the square on the board changed to their button's color. If they answered wrong, the square stayed the same, and they could try that square again later (with a new question). If a player got five squares in a row (up, down, or diagonally), they earned bonus points!

Each player answered nine questions. The player with the most points at the end won the game. If there was a tie, they kept asking questions until a winner was clear.

Show Closure

On December 25, 2012, the STS Channel in Russia announced that The Cleverest would stop airing. They said it was due to changes in their financial plans.

About six months later, the show also ended in Ukraine. The very last episode aired on June 23, 2013.

Season Structure

Each season of The Cleverest had a special structure. Players who did well in earlier games, especially in the semifinals, could join "The Cleverest's Club."

New players competed in qualifying games. Three players from each qualifying game were chosen to join the club. Club members then competed in semifinal games. Four semifinal games were held, and three players from each went to the Grand Final. The Grand Final was the biggest game of the season, and its winner became the season's champion!

Awards

The Cleverest was a very successful show and won several awards:

• In 2004, it won the TEFI contest for "Children's Program."
• It received the "Teletriumph" award in 2008–2009.
• In 2009, it won the TEFI contest again, this time for "Telecast."

Regular Championship Winners

Here are some of the champions from different seasons and leagues:

• 2003 season
  • Major League: Champion George Moloschenkov (Moscow, Russia).
• Winter-spring season of 2004
  • Junior League: Champion Marina Mintsikovskaya (Kyiv, Ukraine).
• Autumn-winter season of 2004
  • Junior League: Champion Andrey Ovsyannikov (Mirgorod, Ukraine).
  • Major League: Georgy Moloschenkov (Moscow, Russia).
• Winter-spring season of 2005
  • Junior League: Champion Alexander Vetchinov (Kyiv, Ukraine).
  • Major League: Dmitry Chumakov (Odessa, Ukraine).
• Autumn-winter season of 2005
  • Junior League: Champion Andrey Ovsyannikov (Mirgorod, Ukraine).
  • Major League: Natalya Novikova (Izhevsk, Russia).
• Winter-spring season of 2006
  • Junior League: Champion Andrey Ovsyannikov (Mirgorod, Ukraine).
  • Major League: Champion Alexey Popov (Moscow, Russia).

After this season, the player groups changed. The Major League players left, the Junior League became the new Major League, and a new Junior League was formed.

• Autumn-winter season of 2006
  • Junior League: Champion Stanislav Shipachev (Kazan, Russia).
  • Major League: Champion Alexander Vetchinov (Kyiv, Ukraine).
• Winter-spring season of 2007
  • Junior League: Champion Ruslan Samoylov (Kharkiv, Ukraine).
  • Major League: Champion Andrey Sidorenko (Yakymivka, Ukraine).
• Autumn-winter season of 2007
  • Junior League: Champion Andrey Boyev (Kursk, Russia).
  • Major League: Champion Valeriya Lazarenko (Kyiv, Ukraine).
• Winter-spring season of 2008
  • Junior League: Champion Andrey Boyev (Kursk, Russia).
  • Major League: Champion Darya Tarasova (Nizhny Novgorod, Russia).

Another big change happened after this season. The Major League players left, the Junior League became the new Major League, and a new Junior League was created.

• Autumn-winter season of 2008
  • Junior League: Champion Alexey Malyshev (Sevastopol, Ukraine).
  • Major League: Champion Stanislav Shipachev (Kazan, Russia).
  • Gold League: Champion Nikita Torzhevsky (Nizhyn, Ukraine).

After this season, the Gold League was added for high school and college students. So, there were now three leagues.

• Winter-spring season of 2009
  • Junior League: Champion Anton Okorokov (Bogoroditsk, Russia).
  • Gold League: Champion Alexander Vetchinov (Kyiv, Ukraine).
• Autumn-winter season of 2009
  • Major League: Champion Ivan Sidorov (Cheboksary, Russia).
  • Gold League: Champion Andrey Voronov (Moscow, Russia).
• Winter-spring season of 2010
  • Junior League: Champion Denis Galiakberov (Kazan, Russia).
  • Major League: Champion Ivan Sidorov (Cheboksary, Russia).

After this season, the Major and Gold Leagues combined. The Junior League became the new Major League, and a new Junior League was formed.

• Autumn-winter season of 2010
  • Junior League: Champion Oleg Gumenyuk (Moscow, Russia).
  • Gold League: Champion Stanislav Shipachev (Kazan, Russia).
• Winter-spring season of 2011
  • Junior League: Champion Oleg Gumenyuk (Moscow, Russia).
  • Major League: Champion Arseny Lameko (Saint-Petersburg, Russia).
• Autumn-winter season of 2011
  • Junior League: Champion Alexandra Nosatova (Belgorod, Russia).
  • Gold League: Champion Boris Belozyorov (Volgograd, Russia).
• Winter-spring season of 2012
  • Junior League: Champion Alexandra Nosatova (Belgorod, Russia).
  • Major League: Champion Anton Okorokov (Bogoroditsk, Russia).
• Autumn-winter season of 2012
  • Gold League: Champion Alexander Vetchinov (Kyiv, Ukraine).

After this season, the player groups and game rules changed again.

• Winter-spring season of 2013 (aired only in Ukraine)
  • Junior League: Champion Pavel Ilchuk (Krasnogorsk, Russia).

Special Editions

Over the years, The Cleverest also had special episodes where different groups of people competed.

Club Members and Their Parents

Some special games featured club members playing with their families:

• "The Cleverest Mom" (January 2007)
• "The Cleverest Dad" (January 2007)
• "The Cleverest: Romanticist’s League" (February 14, 2008): Finalists from the 2006 season played in pairs with partners of the opposite gender. Violetta Skripnikova and Yury Yakovlev won.
• "Parent’s Day" (September 7, 2008): Parents and players competed. The Gaponovs team won.
• "Together" (September 6, 2009): A pair game where a Junior League finalist and a Gold League finalist teamed up. Anton Okorokov and Andrey Yelishev won.
• "Teacher’s Year" (September 5, 2010): Players from the show competed with their teachers. Boris Belozyorov and Lilya Bukayeva won.
• "The Champions Game" (January 30, 2011, on Inter and February 6, 2011, on STS): Past Grand Final winners competed against each other. Valeriya Lazarenko was the champion.

Other Contestants

There were also games with people who weren't regular contestants:

• In 2003, some games featured teams from Russia and Ukraine.
• Special episodes also included "The Cleverest Teacher," "The Cleverest Doctor," and "The Cleverest Military Man."
• From 2002 to 2005, short special episodes aired during commercial breaks. These determined "the cleverest" among four people, including celebrities.
• In September 2007, actors from the TV series "Kadetstvo" played, and Kirill Yemelyanov won. Young singers and experts from "What? Where? When?" also had their own games.
• A game featuring current and former members of KVN (a popular comedy competition) was also held, with Sergey Sivokho winning.
• From July to September 2011, STS channel worked with the Ministry of Defense of Russia to create "The Cleverest cadet." Students from military schools competed. Alexander Yegorov from the Tver Suvorov Military School won this series of games.

Show Air Time

The Cleverest aired on different channels and at various times:

• From March 8, 2003, it aired on "STS" in Russia and "1+1" in Ukraine.
• Over the years, the show's time slot changed, moving from afternoons to mornings and evenings on Saturdays and Mondays.
• In 2013, the show aired on the Ukrayina channel in Ukraine.