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Reference.org
Alexander Matrosov
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<p>Alexander Matveyevich Matrosov was a Soviet infantry soldier during the Second World War, posthumously awarded the title of the <a href="/facts/Hero_of_the_Soviet_Union/sRwYkvmC">Hero of the Soviet Union</a> reportedly for blocking a German machine-gun with his body. </p><p>His official Soviet biography states he was born in Yekaterinoslav (now <a href="/facts/Dnipro/tbWRkq3g">Dnipro</a>). However an evidence emerged that both his name and place of birth were invented by him while he was <a href="/facts/Homeless_children_in_the_Soviet_Union/mWmvaL8y">a street child</a>. There are several versions about his origins. </p>