The Soviet Union had had a head start many times over, starting with the Sputnik in 1957, and the United States saw it as a competition between "tyranny" (Moscow) and "freedom" (Washington).
Since the Soviets had not landed man on the moon, Kennedy saw such a feat as being the achievement to settle the matter once and for all. So, on May 25, 1961, the American leader went to the Congress and threw the challenge that had since changed the face of space exploration.
