DNIPRO, Ukraine—Viktor Listov was a 10th grade student in St.
Petersburg (then known as Leningrad), Russia, when Soviet cosmonaut Yuri
Gagarin became the first man in space, completing one orbit of the Earth on
April 12, 1961, aboard his Vostok 1 spacecraft.
Listov vividly remembers the day. His teacher interrupted the
day’s lesson and told the students the good news. Then, class was canceled and
the students were let loose to celebrate—an unprecedented break from the Soviet
school system’s typically rigid discipline.
“It was the proudest moment of our existence, it was intensely great,” Listov, now 74, says during an interview from his office at Ukraine’s National Aerospace …read more
Source: The Daily Signal
