The Stars My Destination: Gemini V

The Space Race: That's NumberWang!
The Soviet Union had sparked the Space Race with the 4 October 1957 launch of Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, & the Soviets maintained their lead for the next eight years, with the first manned spaceflight (Yuri Gagarin aboard the Vostok 1 on 12 April 1961), also the first manned orbit of the Earth; the first flight of multiple spacecraft (Vostok 3 & Vostok 4 on 12 August 1962); the first flight of a spacecraft with a crew of more than one (Voskhod 1 on 12 October 1964); & the first spacewalk (Alexei Leonov aboard the Voskhod 2 on 18 March 1965: Wayback Machine—"The Explorers' Club, № DCCXXXVIII").

The United States was playing catch-up, but from the jump showed signs that the Soviets' lead was evaporating & doomed to disappear. The American astronauts were pilots, able to maneuver their Mercury capsules, whereas the Soviet cosmonauts aboard their Vostok capsules were passengers. Soviet formation flight was achieved through meticulously timed launches, whereas the Americans were able to pilot to true orbital rendezvous (Gemini VI-A & Gemini VII on 15-16 December 1965, as we shall soon see—stay tuned!). With the triumph of Gemini V in August 1965, the United States took an insurmountable lead that endured 'til the Space Race was definitively won with the first Moon landing by Apollo 11 (Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin aboard the Eagle on 20 July 1969: Wayback Machine—"№ DCXCVIII", Wayback Machine—"№ DCXCIX", & Wayback Machine—"№ DCC").

Manned missions
United States: 9
Soviet Union: 8

Manned hours in space
United States: 642
Soviet Union: 607

Single-mission orbits
United States: 120
Soviet Union: 81

Capcom: "How does it feel the United States to be a new record holder?"
Cooper: "At last, huh?"