Just my two penneth but ...
What the Wright brothers flew was not the first successful aeroplane, that came later. What they were tinkering around with was an experimental flying machine. They were one of many groups venturing into unknown territory and learning (often by mistake) as they went. I'm glad they did, I'm just as glad that others did also.
They are not particularly special in this field, just lucky enough to have been remembered by most as 'the fist'.
What exactly constitutes successful aeroplane? One that can actually do something other than get up and down again without killing its occupant or wrecking itself in the process?