After Russia's launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957, Chairman Mao Zedong intended to place a Chinese satellite in orbit by 1959 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC). However, China did not successfully launch its first satellite until 24 April 1970. On 14 July 1967, Mao and Premier Zhou Enlai decided that the PRC should not be left behind, and started China's own human spaceflight program. However, the first attempt, the Shuguang spacecraft, which was based on the US Gemini craft, was canceled on 13 May 1972.