Historical Events in 2004

Events 1 - 200 of 348

• Jan 1 St. Louis head coach Joel Quenneville records his 300th NHL win with the Blues, a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers at Savvis Center, St. Louis; Quenneville is Blues coaching games and wins leader
• Jan 2 Stardust successfully flies past Comet Wild 2, collecting samples that it will return to Earth two years later

• Jan 3 Flight 604, a Boeing 737 owned by Flash Airlines, an Egyptian airliner, plunges into the Red Sea, killing all 148 people on board.
• Jan 3 Panthers kicker John Kasay ties NFL-playoff record with 5 field goals to lead Carolina to a 29-10 win over Dallas Cowboys in the Wild Card round of playoffs in Charlotte, North Carolina
• Jan 4 Mikheil Saakashvili is elected President of Georgia
• Jan 4 Spirit, a NASA Mars Rover, lands successfully on Mars at 04:35 UTC.

• Jan 6 Costas Simitis announces his resignation as president of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement in Greece

• Jan 11 "4th and 26", trailing Green Bay Packers by 3 in NFC Divisional Playoff Game, Philadelphia Eagles face 4th and 26 on their final drive, Donovan McNabb hits Freddie Mitchell for 29 yards. Eagles tie the game and go on to win in overtime
• Jan 11 Washington Capitals' German goaltender Olaf Kölzig records his 32nd NHL career shutout in a 1-0 win against the visiting Edmonton Oilers
• Jan 12 The world's largest ocean liner, RMS Queen Mary 2, makes its maiden voyage
• Jan 13 Harold Shipman, a British GP who is believed to have killed more than 200 of his patients in Manchester, is found hanged in his prison cell
• Jan 13 Toronto's Tom Fitzgerald and Gary Roberts become first teammates in NHL history to play their 1,000th NHL game on the same night as the Maple Leafs beat the visiting Calgary Flames, 4-1
• Jan 14 The national flag of Georgia, the so-called "five cross flag" restored to official use after a hiatus of some 500 years
• Jan 21 Canada: The residence of reporter Juliet O'Neill is searched by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) investigating leaks concerning the deportation of Maher Arar
• Jan 21 Minnesota Wild set an NHL record for 2 fastest goals, when Jim Dowd and Richard Park score just 3 seconds apart in the final 15 seconds of a 4-2 win over visiting Chicago Blackhawks
• Jan 21 NASA's MER-A (the Mars Rover Spirit) ceases communication with mission control. The problem lies with Flash Memory management and is fixed remotely from Earth on February 6.

• Jan 26 A whale explodes in the town of Tainan, Taiwan. A build-up of gas in the decomposing sperm whale is suspected of causing the explosion.
• Jan 26 Mydoom, the most destructive computer worm (so far), first sighted on computers in North America. Goes on to cause $38 billion in damages.

• Feb 1 251 people are trampled to death and 244 injured in a stampede at the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

• Feb 5 Rebels from the Revolutionary Artibonite Resistance Front capture the city of Gonaïves, starting the 2004 Haiti rebellion
• Feb 5 Twenty-three Chinese people drown when a group of 35 cockle-pickers are trapped by rising tides in Morecambe Bay, England. Twenty-one bodies are recovered.

• Feb 13 The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics discovers the universe's largest known diamond, white dwarf star BPM 37093
• Feb 13 The WB Network announces that "Angel" would not be brought back for a sixth season
• Feb 14 In a suburb of Moscow, Russia, the roof of the Transvaal water park collapses, killing more than 25 people, and wounding more than 100 others.
• Feb 15 46th Daytona 500: Dale Earnhardt Jr. wins exactly 6 years to the day after his father Dale Earnhardt Sr. won his first and only Daytona 500 in 1998
• Feb 16 The Pittsburgh Penguins lose their 12th consecutive home game, a NHL record

• Feb 18 Up to 295 people, including nearly 200 rescue workers, die near Neyshabur in Iran when a run-away freight train carrying sulfur, petrol and fertiliser catches fire and explodes.
• Feb 19 Nazi-hunter Simon Wiesenthal of Austria, is awarded an honorary British knighthood in recognition of a "lifetime of service to humanity."
• Feb 21 The first European political party organization, the European Greens, is established in Rome
• Feb 26 Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski is killed in a plane crash near Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
• Feb 26 The United States lifts a ban on travel to Libya, ending travel restrictions to the nation that had lasted for 23 years.
• Feb 27 A bombing of a Superferry by Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines worst terrorist attack kills 116
• Feb 27 Former BPMC general secretary Ordrick Samuel launches a new party in Barbuda, Barbudans for a Better Barbuda
• Feb 28 Over 1 million Taiwanese participating in the 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally form a 500-kilometre (300-mile) long human chain to commemorate the 228 Incident in 1947

• Feb 29 Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigns as President of Haiti following popular rebel uprising.
• Mar 1 Mohammed Bahr al-Uloum becomes President of Iraq.

• Mar 2 Pittsburgh Penguins end their NHL record 14-game home losing streak when they tie the visiting New York Islanders, 3-3
• Mar 2 Rosetta space probe is launched by the European Space Agency to study comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko with Philae lander module aboard
• Mar 2 Saint Joseph's Hawks finish their college basketball season with an 82-50 win over St. Bonaventure; Hawks undefeated with a perfect 27-0 record in A-10 East Conference
• Mar 2 Voters in the U.S. state of Georgia vote on a referendum concerning its Confederacy-derived flag.
• Mar 2 War in Iraq: Al Qaeda carries out the Ashoura Massacre in Iraq, killing 170 and wounding over 500

• Mar 7 New Democracy wins the national elections in Greece.
• Mar 8 A new constitution is signed by Iraq's Governing Council after the invasion and occupation by American-led forces
• Mar 11 Terrorists explode simultaneous bombs on Madrid's rail network ripping through a commuter train and rocking three stations, killing 190
• Mar 12 Music work "I La Galigo" by Richard Wilson debuts in Singapore, based on Bugis creation myth from South Sulawesi (world's most voluminous literary work)
• Mar 12 Roh Moo-hyun, President of South Korea, is impeached by its national assembly for the first time in the nation's history.

• Mar 15 Announcement of the discovery of 90377 Sedna, the farthest natural object in the Solar system so far observed
• Mar 17 Unrest in Kosovo results in more than 22 killed, 200 wounded, and the destruction of 35 Serb Orthodox shrines in Kosovo and two mosques in Belgrade and Nis.
• Mar 19 A Swedish DC-3 shot down by a Russian MiG-15 in the 1950s is finally recovered after years of work. The remains of the crew are left in place, pending further investigations.
• Mar 19 A truck and a bus crash head-on in Äänekoski, Finland. 24 people are killed and 13 injured.
• Mar 19 Taiwanese president Chen Shui-bian is shot just before the country's presidential election on March 20.

• Mar 21 In Malaysia, the 11th Federal and State elections are held, returning the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional to power with an increased majority
• Mar 22 Ahmed Yassin, co-founder and leader of the Palestinian Sunni Islamist militant group Hamas, and bodyguards killed in the Gaza Strip by Israeli Air Force AH-64 Apache fired Hellfire missiles
• Mar 23 Andhra Pradesh Federation of Trade Unions holds its first conference in Hyderabad, India
• Mar 23 Usher releases his 4th studio album "Confessions" (2004 Billboard Album of the Year, Grammy Award Best Contemporary R&B Album 2005)
• Mar 27 HMS Scylla, a decommissioned Leander class frigate, is sunk as an artificial reef off Cornwall, the first of its kind in Europe.
• Mar 28 Kraft Nabisco Championship Women's Golf, Mission Hills CC: Grace Park wins her only major title by 1 stroke, sinking a 6-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole; fellow South Korean Aree Song is runner-up
• Mar 29 Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia join NATO as full members
• Mar 29 The Republic of Ireland becomes the first country in the world to ban smoking in all work places, including bars and restaurants
• Mar 31 Australian swimmer Lisbeth Lenton breaks Inge de Bruijn's 4-year old 100m freestyle women's world record in 53.66s at the Australian Olympic trials in Sydney
• Mar 31 In Fallujah, Iraq, 4 American private military contractors working for Blackwater USA, are killed and their bodies mutilated after being ambushed
• Mar 31 With a 12-1 defeat of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Tokyo, NY Yankees starter Kevin Brown becomes only the 2nd pitcher in MLB history to have beaten all 30 teams
• Apr 1 Google introduces Gmail: the launch is met with skepticism on account of the launch date
• Apr 2 Islamist terrorists involved in the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks attempt to bomb the Spanish high-speed train AVE near Madrid. Their attack is thwarted.
• Apr 3 Islamic terrorists involved in the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks are trapped by the police in their apartment and kill themselves
• Apr 6 Rolandas Paksas becomes the first president of Lithuania to be peacefully removed from the post by impeachment.
• Apr 8 The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement on the Conflict in Darfur is signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups, ending hostilities amid a 45 day ceasefire [1]

• Apr 16 The super liner Queen Mary 2 embarks on her first Transatlantic crossing, linking the golden age of ocean travel to the modern age of ocean travel.
• Apr 18 Jason Koumas scores a last minute goal in a 1-0 win against Sunderland
• Apr 20 In Iraq, 12 mortars are fired on Abu Ghraib Prison by insurgents, killing 22 detainees and wounding 92.

• Apr 22 Two fuel trains collide in Ryongchon, North Korea, killing up to 150 people.

• Apr 24 United States lifts economic sanctions imposed on Libya 18 years ago, as reward for cooperation in eliminating weapons of mass destruction

• Apr 29 Oldsmobile builds its final car ending 107 years of production

• Apr 30 U.S. media release graphic photos of American soldiers abusing and sexually humiliating Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison
• May 1 Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia join the European Union, celebrated at the residence of the Irish President in Dublin.
• May 1 Giants outfielder Barry Bonds sets MLB record for being intentionally walked 4 times in a 9-inning game during 6-3 defeat of Florida in SF
• May 2 Yelwa massacre of more than 630 nomad Muslims by Christians in Nigeria

• May 9 Chechen president Akhmad Kadyrov is killed in a land mine bomb blast under a VIP stage during a World War II memorial victory parade in Grozny, Chechnya

• May 13 The final episode of "Frasier" on NBC is watched by 33 million people
• May 14 The Constitutional Court of South Korea overturns the impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun

• May 16 Day of Mourning at Bykivnia forest, just outside of Kyiv, Ukraine where during 1930s and early 1940s communist bolsheviks executed over 100,000 Ukrainian civilians
• May 17 Massachusetts becomes the first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage
• May 18 Arizona Diamondbacks' Randy Johnson becomes 16th pitcher to throw a perfect game (2-0 vs Atlanta)
• May 21 Sherpa Pemba Dorjie climbs Mount Everest in 8 hours 10 minutes, breaking his rival Sherpa Lakpa Gelu's record from the previous year.
• May 21 Stanislav Petrov awarded World Citizen Award for averting a potential nuclear war in 1983 after correctly guessing Russian early warning system at fault

• May 22 Super Rugby Final, Canberra: ACT Brumbies claim their 2nd title with a 47-38 win over Canterbury Crusaders; Brumbies wingers Mark Gerrard (3) and Joe Roff (2) combine for 5 tries
• May 22 The U.S. town of Hallam, Nebraska, is wiped out by a powerful F4 tornado that broke a width record at an astounding 2.5 miles wide. It also kills one local resident.
• May 23 Part of Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport's Terminal 2E collapses, killing four people and injuring three others.
• May 24 North Korea bans mobile phones.
• May 26 The New York Times publishes admission of journalistic failings, claims its flawed reporting and lack of skeptism during buildup to 2003 Iraq War helped promote belief that Iraq possessed large stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction.
• May 26 The United States Army veteran Terry Nichols is found guilty of 161 state murder charges for helping carry out the Oklahoma City bombing.
• May 28 The Iraqi Governing Council chooses Ayad Allawi, a longtime anti-Saddam Hussein exile, to become Prime Minister of Iraq's interim government
• May 29 The Al-Khobar massacres in Saudi Arabia kill 22
• May 29 The World War II Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C.

• May 31 British children's cartoon "Peppa Pig" created by Astley Baker Davies premieres on Channel 5

• Jun 6 58th Tony Awards: "Avenue Q" (musical) & "I Am My Own Wife" (play) win
• Jun 6 Tamil is established as a Classical language by the President of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam in a joint sitting of the two houses of the Indian Parliament.

• Jun 7 Stanley Cup Final, Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL: Tampa Bay Lightning beat Calgary Flames, 2-1 for 4-3 series win; Tampa Bay's 1st-ever appearance in final
• Jun 8 Transit of Venus (between Earth & Sun) occurs
• Jun 11 Cassini-Huygens makes its closest flyby of Phoebe

• Jun 12 A 1.3 kilogram chondrite type meteorite strikes a house in Ellerslie, New Zealand causing serious damage but no injuries
• Jun 21 SpaceShipOne becomes the first privately funded spaceplane to achieve spaceflight

• Jun 24 Capital punishment is declared unconstitutional in New York

• Jun 24 NBA Draft: Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy power forward Dwight Howard first pick by Orlando Magic
• Jun 28 Estonia, Lithuania and Slovenia join the European Exchange Rate Mechanism
• Jun 28 Sovereign power is handed to the interim government of Iraq by the Coalition Provisional Authority, ending the U.S.-led rule of that nation
• Jun 28 The 17th NATO Summit starts in Istanbul.

• Jun 30 British rock guitarist Dave Davies (The Kinks) suffers a debilitating stroke, at 57; he recovers in 2006 to resume his music career
• Jul 1 Saturn Orbit insertion of Cassini-Huygens begins at 01:12 UTC and ends at 02:48 UTC.
• Jul 2 ASEAN Regional Forum accepts Pakistan as its 24th member.
• Jul 3 Official opening of Bangkok's subway system.
• Jul 4 The cornerstone of the Freedom Tower is laid on the site of the World Trade Center in New York City. (This was largely a symbolic event; actual construction would not start for several weeks)
• Jul 5 First direct presidential election held in Indonesia, eventually won by Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

• Jul 21 The United Kingdom government publishes Delivering Security in a Changing World, a paper detailing wide-ranging reform of the country's armed forces

• Aug 1 A supermarket fire kills 396 people and injures 500 in Asunción, Paraguay
• Aug 3 MESSENGER spacecraft launches from Cape Canaveral

• Aug 7 Cubs pitcher Greg Maddux enters the history books with his 300th career win in the Chicago's 8-4 triumph v San Francisco at SBC Park

• Aug 12 New Jersey Governor James McGreevey comes out publicly as gay
• Aug 13 156 Congolese Tutsi refugees massacred at the Gatumba refugee camp in Burundi
• Aug 13 28th Olympic Games opens at Athens, Greece
• Aug 13 Black Friday crackdown by NSS on a peaceful protest in the capital city of Maldives, Malé.
• Aug 13 Hurricane Charley, a Category 4 storm, strikes Punta Gorda, Florida and devastates the surrounding area.
• Aug 14 The Australian women's 4 x 100m freestyle relay team of Alice Mills, Lisbeth Lenton, Petria Thomas & Jodie Henry smash the world record to take gold in 3:35.94 at the Athens Olympics
• Aug 15 Bay of Plenty defeat Auckland 33-26 in Rugby Union to win NZ's Ranfurly shield for the first time in the shield's 102 year history and after 28 unsuccessful challenges
• Aug 15 South African 4 x 100m freestyle relay team of Roland Schoeman, Lyndon Ferns, Darian Townsend & Ryk Neethling smash the world record with 3:13.17 at the Athens Olympics
• Aug 16 Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe wins the men's 200m freestyle in Olympic record 1:44.71, giving him the 200/400m freestyle double at the Athens Olympics
• Aug 17 MD5 collision found by Chinese researchers.
• Aug 17 The National Assembly of Serbia unanimously adopts new state symbols for Serbia: Boze Pravde becomes the new anthem and the coat of arms is adopted for the whole country.
• Aug 17 Yana Klochkova of Ukraine wins the 200m individual medley in 2:11.14 at the Athens Olympics to wrap up the 200/400m medley double
• Aug 18 Dutch swimmer Pieter van den Hoogenband wins the coveted 100m freestyle gold medal in 48.17 ahead of Roland Schoeman of South Africa at the Athens Olympics
• Aug 18 Japanese swimmer Kosuke Kitajima wraps up the 100/200m breaststroke double at the Athens Olympics when he wins the 200m in 2:09.44, an Olympic record
• Aug 18 Shot put event at the Athens Olympics held in Ancient Olympia, site of the ancient Olympic Games; first time women ever compete in venue; Yumileidi Cumbá of Cuba wins women's gold; American Adam Nelson men's gold
• Aug 18 US women's 4 × 200m freestyle relay team of Natalie Coughlin, Carly Piper, Dana Vollmer & Kaitlin Sandeno smash long-standing world record set by GDR in 1987 to win gold at the Athens Olympics (7:53.42)

• Aug 19 Australian swimmer Jodie Henry records 53.84 to win the blue ribband 100m freestyle gold medal ahead of Dutch star Inge de Bruijn at the Athens Olympics
• Aug 19 US gymnast Carly Patterson becomes the 2nd American woman to win the all-around gold medal, and 1st to win at a non-boycotted Olympic games, when she takes gold in Athens
• Aug 20 American swimmer Michael Phelps wraps up the 100/200m butterfly double at the Athens Olympics when he wins the 100m (51.25 OR) ahead of teammate Ian Croker

• Aug 21 American super-swimmer Michael Phelps wins his 6th gold medal of the Athens Olympics even though he doesn't swim the final of men's 4 x 100m medley relay; US wins in world record 3:30.68
• Aug 21 Belarusian sprinter Yulia Nestsiarenka runs 10.93 to beat American Lauryn Williams and win the 100m gold medal at the Athens Olympics
• Aug 21 Nicolás Massú & Fernando González win the men's doubles tennis at the Athens Olympics beating German pair Nicolas Kiefer & Rainer Schüttler in 5 sets; it's Chile's first Olympic gold medal
• Aug 21 South Africa clinch their 2nd Tri Nations Rugby Series on points differential with a 23-19 win over Australia in Durban; Wallabies score 3 tries to 2, but Percy Montgomery lands 5 goals for Springboks
• Aug 21 The archery competition concludes at the Athens Olympics with South Korea dominant with 3 of 4 gold medals; venue is the Panathenaic Stadium, in which the 1896 games were held
• Aug 21 The Australian women's 4 x 100m medley relay team of Giaan Rooney, Leisel Jones, Petria Thomas & Jodie Henry smashes the world record to take gold in 3:57.32 at the Athens Olympics

• Aug 22 After winning the doubles tennis gold medal at the Athens Olympics, Chile's Nicolás Massú wins the men's singles gold 6–3, 3–6, 2–6, 6–3, 6–4 over American Mardy Fish

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