![Sergei Korolev Sergei Korolev](http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/sergey-pavlovich-korolyov-53208-1.jpg)
Sergei Korolev was a Soviet spacecraft designer and rocket engineer who played an important role during the Space Race between the Soviet Union and the United States of America in the 1950s and 1960s. He was largely responsible for developing the R-7 Rocket and launching Yuri Gagarin into space. Sergei Korolev also launched Belka, Strelka, and Laika into space.