Yep, not many people know this but 50 years ago today, 21st July 1969, Russia Landed on the Moon, ....well it was a kind of an Uncontrolled Landing, more of a Crash.
Lunar 15 was sent up by Russia on June 14, 1969, a few days before the Apollo 11 Launch, the Unmanned Spacecraft was capable of certain Scientific Studies including lunar surface photography, Lunar 15 was already in Orbit around the Moon whilst the Apollo 11 was planning its Landing on the Moon on the 20th July, the Russian Spacecraft after completing 86 communications sessions and 52 orbits of the Moon at various inclinations and altitudes began its descent.
Astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin had already set foot on the Moon when Luna 15 fired its main retro rocket engine to initiate descent to the surface at 15:47 UT on 21 July 1969 just hours before Apollo 11 was due to leave.
So possibly a big achievement by Russia then ?, not really as Russia had Landed its first Moon Landing Spacecraft, Lunar 2, on the Moon 10 Years earlier back in 1959.