About Fyodor Okhlopkov
Fyodor Matveyevich Okhlopkov (Russian: Фёдор Матве́евич Охло́пков, Yakut: Маппыай уола Сүөдэр Охлопков, romanized: Mappyay uola Süöder Okhlopkov; 3 March 1908 – 28 May 1968) was a Soviet sniper during World War II credited with 429 kills. Nominated for the title Hero of the Soviet Union in 1944 after tallying his first 420 sniper kills but rejected for unclear reasons, he was belatedly awarded the title in May 1965 over twenty years later to coincide with the anniversary of Victory Day. He is considered as one of the deadliest snipers in history. == Early life == Okhlopkov was born on 3 March 1908 to a Yakut peasant family in Krest-Khaldzhay. Having only a primary education and being orphaned at the age of twelve, he held down a variety of jobs from a young age to support his family, working as a hauler in a mine and later as a machine operator on a collective farm. When he was not working he attended sharpshooting training with Osoaviakhim, earning a "Voroshilov shooter" badge for his accuracy; he had been a member of the Komsomol since 1929. == World War II == Upon being drafted into the Red Army in September 1941, he was posted as a machine gunner in the 1243rd Infantry Regiment of the 375th Infantry Division, which was composed mostly of Siberians and included his brother Vasily, who was killed in action in January 1942. Before becoming a sniper, Okhlopkov had become commander of a squad of machine gunners. By October 1942, less than a year after arriving at the warfront in December 1941, Fyodor was sent to the 234th Infantry Regiment where he was made a sniper owing to his background as a skilled marksman; earlier in August he had been wounded in combat for a fourth time, with the extent of his injuries requiring him to be evacuated to a hospital in Ivanovo. That month his division lost nearly 80% of its personnel to enemy attacks.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.