First Soviet World Champion Ever
October 19, 1946, Paris, France – Grigory Novak of Team CCCP Weightlifting wins the world title in the 82.5kg weight class at the 1946 World Championship in France and becomes the 1st ever Soviet world champion in all sports.
On the History in Color photo (left to right):
Stanley Stanczyk (USA, 67.5kg, gold), Grigory Novak (USSR, 82.5kg, gold), Frank Kay (USA, 82.5kg, silver) at the 1946 World Championship in Paris.