Events Date 2004 May | History by KabAstro

May 1 130th Kentucky Derby: Stewart Elliott wins aboard Smarty Jones. North American wagering records smashed ($142m on 12-race card)
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.

Baseball Record

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

Television Finale

May 6 TV sitcom "Friends" airs season finale in 10th and final season in US (52.5 million viewers)

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

Laureus Awards

May 10 Laureus World Sports Awards, Cultural Centre of Belém, Lisbon, Portugal: Sportsman: Michael Schumacher; Sportswoman: Annika Sörenstam; Team: England Men's National Rugby Union team

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

Shrek 2

May 15 "Shrek 2" directed Andrew Adamson and Kelly Asbury, with voices by Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz premieres at the Cannes Film Festival

May 15 129th Preakness: Stewart Elliott aboard Smarty Jones wins in 1:55.59
May 15 49th Eurovision Song Contest: Ruslana for Ukraine wins singing "Wild Dances" in Istanbul
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 19 NHL Western Conference Final: Calgary Flames beat San Jose Sharks, 4 games to 2

The Notebook

May 20 Cult romantic film "The Notebook" premieres at the Seattle Film Festival, starring Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling and directed by Nick Cassavetes

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

57th Cannes Film Festival

May 22 57th Cannes Film Festival: "Fahrenheit 9/11", directed by Michael Moore wins the Palme d'Or. First documentary to win.

FA Cup Final

May 22 English FA Cup Final, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff (71,350): Manchester United beats Millwall, 3-0; Ruud van Nistelrooy scores 2 and Cristiano Ronaldo 1 in Red Devils' 11th title win

PM Manmohan Singh

May 22 Manmohan Singh becomes the 13th Prime Minister of India

May 22 NHL Eastern Conference Final: Tampa Bay Lightning beat Philadelphia Flyers, 4 games to 3
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 12th UEFA Champions League Final: Porto beats AS Monaco 3-0 at Gelsenkirchen

Academy of Country Music Awards

May 26 39th Academy of Country Music Awards: Toby Keith & Martina McBride win

Country Singer-Songwriter Martina McBride

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.

Indy 500

May 30 Indianapolis 500: Buddy Rice wins from pole for team owners Bobby Rahal and David Letterman in a rain shortened race (450 miles - 180 of 200 scheduled laps)