What Happened in July 2020

Historical Events

Important Vote

Jul 1 Russian President Vladimir Putin wins national referendum allowing longer presidential terms of office

Jul 1 WHO says Middle East at "critical threshold" with COVID-19 cases over 1 million, 80% of deaths in Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia
Jul 1 Word record drug haul of 14 tonnes of amphetamines seized by Italian police in Salerno worth $1.1 billion. Thought made in Syria by Islamic State.
Jul 2 British Darts Organisation’s commercial arm – BDO Enterprises Ltd, goes into liquidation due to lack of sponsorship; oversaw original professional, semi-pro and amateur competitions in Britain
Jul 2 Funeral for slain Ethiopian singer Hachalu Hundessa in Ambo amid nationwide unrest at his death that has killed over 80 people
Jul 2 More than 160 people die after a landslide at a jade mine in northern Hpakant area of Myanmar
Jul 2 Texas Governor Greg Abbott makes wearing face masks mandatory as cases of coronavirus soar in the state
Jul 3 Major League Baseball All-Star Game planned to be hosted on July 14 by the LA Dodgers is cancelled due to government restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic
Jul 3 MLB Cleveland Indians owner Paul Dolan announces he would review changing the organization's name
Jul 4 Record rain in over island of Kyushu in Japan causes flooding killing a least 37 people with evacuation of more than 200,00
Jul 5 Florida reports a record 11,458 daily COVID-19 cases
Jul 5 Mexico's COVID-19 death toll passes 30,000 as it becomes the world's 5th worst-affected country
Jul 6 America officially begins withdrawing from the World Health Organization

Contract of Interest

Jul 6 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes agrees to the largest contract for an athlete in sports history, inking a 12-year deal that could end up being worth US$503 million

Jul 6 Zoonotic diseases, which jump from animals to humans, are increasing due to unsustainable farming and climate change according to new report by the UN

COVID-19 Pandemic

Jul 7 Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announces he has tested positive for COVID-19

Jul 7 India surpasses Russia to become the world's third-worst affected country, daily COVID-19 cases exceeding 20,000 and total cases over 700,000
Jul 7 Texas records more than 10,000 daily cases of COVID-19 for the 1st time
Jul 7 Violent protests in Belgrade, Serbia, at government announcement of weekend lockdown due to COVID-19 surge
Jul 8 Americans and Polynesians made contact around 1200 A.D. according to new genomic study in "Nature", people from eastern Polynesia had DNA from indigenous Colombia
Jul 8 Australian city of Melbourne goes back into lockdown for six weeks after second outbreak of 700 active cases
Jul 8 US government issues directive that more than 1 million international students will be stripped of their visas if their courses entirely online
Jul 9 McGirt v. Oklahoma, in landmark case US Supreme Court rules Congress had not disestablished Oklahoma Indian reserves

Hagia Sophia

Jul 10 Sixth century cathedral Hagia Sophia turned into a mosque by decree issued by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (converted to a mosque 1453-1934)

Jul 14 New study shows Andean condor, world's heaviest bird, can fly for 5 hours without flapping its wings (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)
Jul 15 Heavy monsoon flooding in Indian north-eastern state of Assam affects more than 2 million people, kills more than 50
Jul 17 India becomes the third country to record 1 million cases of COVID-19, 56% concentrated in Maharashtra, Delhi and Tamil Nadu

COVID-19 Pandemic

Jul 18 Indian actor Amitabh Bachchan and his son Abhishek are hospitalized with COVID-19 in Mumbai

Jul 19 First Arab interplanetary mission, the Mars "Hope" orbiter launches on board Japanese H-2A rocket from Tanegashima Space Center

COVID-19 Pandemic

Jul 19 Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani says 25 million Iranians already infected with COVID-19, 35 million at risk (official figure just 269,440)

Jul 19 Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler criticizes federal policing of protesters in his city, calling it unconstitutional

Sports History

Jul 19 World Formula 1 drivers champion Lewis Hamilton wins a record 8th Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest to equal Michael Schumacher's record of wins at a single circuit (French GP)

Jul 20 Announcement that a COVID-19 vaccine developed by the University of Oxford (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19) is able to trigger immune response and antibodies

Sports History

Jul 20 Cristiano Ronaldo becomes first man to score 50 goals in Serie A, La Liga and the Premier League with a double in Juventus' 2-1 win over Lazio

Jul 20 Scientists find evidence of volcanoes on Venus, showing the planet is not as dormant as previously thought (Nature Geoscience)
Jul 20 United Kingdom suspends extradition treaty with Hong Kong in wake of new Chinese security laws for the territory
Jul 21 European Union agrees huge €750 billion ($859 billion) post-COVID-19 stimulus bill

Trial of Interest

Jul 21 Former Sudanese leader Omar al-Bashir goes on trial in Khartoum for the 1989 coup that toppled the government

Dictator and President of Sudan Omar al-Bashir

Jul 21 Russian interference in British politics is 'the new normal' according to report by British Intelligence and Security Committee

Event of Interest

Jul 21 Stage 1 of the controversial filling of Blue Nile River dam announced completed by Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed

Jul 22 California passes New York total for COVID-19 cases (415,763 vs 415,094), though NY death toll much higher

Music History

Jul 22 Kim Kardashian asks for understanding of her husband Kanye West's struggles with his bipolar disorder on Instagram

Jul 23 China launches its first mission to Mars, Tianwen-1, a combined orbiter, lander and rover, from Wenchang Launch Site, Hainan Island
Jul 23 South Africa records more than 400,000 COVID-19 cases amid surging infections and decides to shut schools for a month
Jul 23 US confirmed cases of COVID-19 pass 4 million with death toll over 143,000. Real number of cases likely up to 13x higher according to CDC.

Event of Interest

Jul 23 US President Trump says he could send 75,000 federal agents to deal with violence in American cities like Portland, drawing backlash

45th US President, Businessman and TV Personality Donald Trump

Jul 25 Cargo ship MV Wakashio runs aground off the coast of Mauritius and begins leaking oil
Jul 25 Hurricane Hanna, 1st of the 2020 season, makes landfall on the Texas Gulf Coast as a category 1 storm
Jul 25 North Korea reports first 'suspected' case of COVID-19 in city of Kaesong

Event of Interest

Jul 26 Body of civil rights activist John Lewis crosses the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma for the last time (beaten there 55 years ago) with a military honor guard as part of a remembrance ceremony

Civil Rights Leader and Congressman John Lewis

Jul 26 Italian football giants Juventus wins its 9th straight Serie A title with goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Federico Bernardeschiin in a 2-0 win over Sampdoria
Jul 27 Google decides its employees can work from home until July 2021, the largest tech company to commit to working from home
Jul 27 US congressman John Lewis becomes the first black lawmaker to lie in state in the Rotunda in Washington D.C.

COVID-19 Pandemic

Jul 27 WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus states that COVID-19 is "easily the most severe" global health emergency the WHO has faced

Head of the World Health Organisation Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

Event of Interest

Jul 28 Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak found guilty of corruption, sentenced to 12 years and fined nearly $50 million

Jul 28 Iter, the world's largest nuclear fusion project, begins assembly in Saint-Paul-lez-Durance, France
Jul 29 Scaled back Hajj pilgrimage begins in Saudi Arabia with no foreigners
Jul 30 Barack Obama gives the eulogy at the funeral of congressman John Lewis, with former presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta
Jul 30 Federal law enforcement officers begin a phased withdrawal from Portland amid criticism of their actions to shut down Black Lives Matter protests
Jul 30 NASA launches to Mars its Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter aboard a V 541 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida
Jul 30 The US economy posts the largest quarterly fall on record with GDP down 9.5% for the 3 months to June 30
Jul 31 Apple wildfire starts near Beaumont, California, forcing the evacuation of nearly 8,000 people over the next few days
Jul 31 Eurozone economic activity falls 11.9% for April-June with Spain the worst at -18.5%, its deepest in modern times
Jul 31 Mexico overtakes the UK to have the world's third highest death toll from COVID-19 with 46,688 fatalities

Events in 2020

Famous Weddings

Jul 17 England's Princess Beatrice marries Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi at Windsor Castle

Famous Deaths

Everton Weekes (1925-2020)

Jul 1 West Indian cricket batsman (48 Tests; 4,455 runs @ 58.61, 15 x 100s), dies at 95

Jul 1 Hugh Downs, American TV journalist (20/20, Concentration), dies at 99
Jul 1 Ida Haendel, Polish-British-Canadian child prodigy violinist, teacher, and author (Woman with Violin), dies of kidney cancer at 91
Jul 2 Betsy Ancker-Johnson, American physicist (plasmas), inventor (high-frequency signal generator), first woman Presidential appointee to the Department of Commerce and first woman VP in the automotive industry, dies at 93 [1]
Jul 2 Nikolai Kapustin, Russian jazz pianist and composer, dies at 82
Jul 3 Ardico Magnini, Italian soccer defender (20 caps; Fiorentina 225 games), dies at 91
Jul 3 Emily Howell Warner, American pilot, 1st woman to captain a commercial American airline plane, dies at 80
Jul 3 Leonardo Villar, Brazilian actor (The Given Word), dies at 96
Jul 5 Bob Reade, American College Football Hall of Fame coach (NCAA Div III C'ship 1983-86; AFCA Div III Coach of the Year 1983–86; Augustana Vikings), dies at 87
Jul 5 Nick Cordero, Canadian Broadway actor (Bullets Over Broadway), dies of COVID-19 complications at 41
Jul 5 Ragaa al-Gedawy, Egyptian actress (The Stranger), dies of COVID-19 at 81
Jul 5 Volodymyr Troshkin, Ukrainian soccer defender (31 caps, USSR; Dynamo Kiev 205 games), dies at 72
Jul 5 Willi Holdorf, German athlete (Olympic gold, United Team of Germany, decathlon 1964), dies at 80
Jul 6 Charlie Daniels, American singer (Devil Went Down to Georgia), dies at 83
Jul 6 Ennio Morricone, Italian trumpeter, and composer of classical music and film scores ("The Mission"; "Cinema Paradiso"; "The Hateful Eight"), dies at 91 [1]
Jul 6 Joe Porcaro, American jazz and session drummer and percussionist (Lalo Schifrin; Rosemary Clooney; Toto), and educator (Los Angeles College of Music), dies at 90
Jul 7 Dannes Coronel, Ecuadorian soccer defender (27 caps; El Nacional), dies from a heart attack at 47
Jul 8 Abdelmajid Tlemçani, Tunisian soccer striker (54 caps; Espérance Sportive de Tunis), dies at 82
Jul 8 Alex Pullin, Australian snowboarder (World C'ship gold snowboard cross 2011, 13), dies from drowning at 32
Jul 8 Naya Rivera, American actress and singer (Glee; Step Up: High Water), drowns while swimming at Lake Piru, near Santa Clarita, California, at 33
Jul 10 Corra Dirksen, South African rugby union winger (10 caps; Northern Transvaal), dies from COVID-19 complications at 82
Jul 10 Jack Charlton, English soccer defender (35 caps; World Cup 1966; Leeds United) and manager (Middlesborough, Sheffield Wed, Newcastle, Rep of Ireland), dies from lymphoma and dementia at 85
Jul 10 Lara van Ruijven, Dutch short track speed skater (World C'ship gold 500m 2019; Olympic bronze 3000m relay 2018), dies from an autoimmune disease at 27
Jul 10 Olga Tass, Hungarian gymnast (Olympic gold, team portable apparatus 1956), dies at 91
Jul 11 Frank Bolling, American baseball second baseman (MLB All-Star 1961–62²; Gold Glove Award 1958; Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves), dies from cancer at 88
Jul 12 Judy Dyble, British folk singer-songwriter (Fairport Convention), dies of lung cancer at 71
Jul 12 Kelly Preston, American actress (Mischief, Twins, A Tigers Tale), dies of breast cancer at 57
Jul 12 Lajos Szűcs, Hungarian soccer defender (37 caps; Ferencváros, Honvéd FC; Hungarian Footballer of the Year 1976; Olympic gold 1968), dies at 76
Jul 12 Rod Bernard, American "swamp pop" singer ("Allons Danser Colinda"), dies at 79 [1]
Jul 12 Wim Suurbier, Dutch soccer right back (60 caps; Ajax 392 games) and manager (LA Heat, TB Rowdies), dies of a cerebral haemorrhage at 75
Jul 13 Chuck Hulse, American auto racer (USAC Champ Car Series, 26 x top 10 finishes), dies at 92
Jul 13 Grant Imahara, American TV Mythbuster, dies of a brain aneurysm at 49
Jul 13 Pat Quinn, Scottish soccer forward (4 caps; Motherwell, Hibernian) and manager (East Fife, FH), dies at 84
Jul 13 [Zindziswa] Zindzi Mandela, South African politician and poet, dies at 59
Jul 14 Ron de Lugo, American politician (1st delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives from U.S. Virgin Islands' 1981-95), dies at 89
Jul 15 Louw de Graaf, Dutch politician and bureaucrat (Member of Parliament; Secretary of Social Affairs (VDA), dies at 90
Jul 15 Travell Mazion, American boxer (WBC-NABF super welterweight title 2020), dies in a car accident at 24
Jul 16 Brigid Berlin, American actress (Andy Warhol films), dies at 80
Jul 16 Jamie Oldaker, American session and touring drummer (Bob Seger; Leon Russell; Eric Clapton; Peter Frampton), dies at 68
Jul 16 Tony Taylor, Cuban baseball second baseman (MLB All Star 1960²; Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers), dies from stroke complications at 84
Jul 16 Vladimir Obukhov, Russian basketball coach (Soviet Union & Malta men's national teams; MBC Dynamo Moscow), dies at 84
Jul 17 C. T. Vivian, American civil rights activist who worked with Martin Luther King, dies at 95
Jul 17 Derek Ho, American surfer (World C'ship 1993; Hawaiian Triple Crown 1984, 86, 88, 90), dies from a heart attack at 55

John Lewis (1940-2020)

Jul 17 American politician (Rep-D-Georgia) and prominent civil rights leader (Big Six), stops causing "good trouble" due to pancreatic cancer at 80

Jul 17 Silvio Marzolini, Argentine soccer defender (28 caps; Boca Juniors), dies from cancer at 79
Jul 17 Zizi Jeanmaire, French dancer, singer and actress (Carmen), dies at 96
Jul 18 Barry Jarman, Australian cricket wicket-keeper (19 Tests; 54 dismissals; South Australia), dies at 84
Jul 18 Charles Papa, Kenyan comedian and actor (Papa Shirandula), dies at 58
Jul 19 Emitt Rhodes, American rock singer-songwriter, musician (Merry-Go-Round), sound engineer, and record producer, dies at 70
Jul 20 Mickey McGee, American session and touring drummer (Linda Ronstadt; Jackson Browne; Flying Burrito Brothers; Juice Newton), and songwriter ("I'll Never Love Again"), dies of COVID-19 complications at 72
Jul 21 Annie Ross, British-American jazz singer (Lambert, Hendricks & Ross - "Twisted") and actress, dies from emphysema and heart disease, at 89 [1]
Jul 21 Mike Sleman, English rugby union winger (31 caps, England; 1 cap British & Irish Lions 1980; Liverpool RUFC), dies at 69
Jul 21 Ralph Liguori, American auto racer (NASCAR Grand National Series 30 x Top 10; 5 x Top 5 finishes), dies at 93
Jul 22 Carlton Haselrig, American football guard (Pro Bowl 1992; Pittsburgh Steelers) and wrestler (6 x NCAA titles; Pitt-Johnstown), dies from liver disease at 54
Jul 22 Charles Evers, American civil rights leader (1st Black mayor in Mississippi since Reconstruction), dies at 97
Jul 23 Benjamin Mkapa, Tanzanian politician, President of Tanzania (1995-2005), dies at 81
Jul 23 Jean Brankart, Belgian cyclist (Tour de France 1955, Giro d'Italia 1958 runner-up; Belgium national track pursuit champion 1956, 58, 59), dies at 90
Jul 23 Mars Rafikov, Russian cosmonaut (one of the 20 original cosmonauts), dies at 66
Jul 24 Ann Syrdal, American psychologist and computer science researcher (developed female synthetic voices at AT&T), dies at 74
Jul 24 Eric Sweeney, Irish contemporary composer (The Green One), dies at 72
Jul 24 Naazim Richardson, American boxing trainer (Bernard Hopkins, "Sugar" Shane Mosley), dies of stroke complications at 55
Jul 24 Regis Philbin, American talk and game show host (Joey Bishop Show; Live with Regis & Kathie Lee; Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?), dies at 88 [1] [2]
Jul 25 Eddie Shack, Canadian ice hockey left wing (NHL All Star 1962, 63, 64; Stanley Cup 1962, 63, 64, 67; Toronto Maple Leafs), dies from throat cancer at 83
Jul 25 Helen Jones Woods, American jazz and swing trombone player (International Sweethearts of Rhythm), dies of COVID-19 at 96
Jul 25 Jim Frick, Swedish harness racing driver (5,002 career race wins), dies from prostate cancer at 68
Jul 25 John Saxon, American actor (Bees, Nightmare on Elm St, Electric Horseman), dies of pneumonia at 83
Jul 25 Lou Henson, American College Basketball Hall of Fame coach (all-time leader in victories University of Illinois and New Mexico State), dies of lymphoma at 88
Jul 25 Maurice Petty, American auto racing crew chief, engine builder and team owner (Petty Enterprises, International Motorsports & NASCAR Hall of Fame), dies at 81

Olivia de Havilland (1916-2020)

Jul 25 British-American Academy Award-winning actress (All the King's Men; The Adventures of Robin Hood; Gone With The Wind; The Heiress), dies at 104

Jul 25 Peter Green [Greenbaum], English guitarist (Fleetwood Mac -"Albatross"), dies at 73 [1] [2]
Jul 26 Bill English, American computer engineer who helped develop the computer mouse and the revolutionary NLS computer system, dies of respiratory failure at 91
Jul 26 Hans-Jochen Vogel, German politician (leader of West Germany's Social Democrats (SPD), 1987-91; Minister of Justice, 1974-84; Mayor of Munich, 1962-72), dies at 94
Jul 27 Denise Johnson, British rock and soul singer (Primal Scream - "Don’t Fight It, Feel It"), and songwriter ("Where Does It Go"), dies at 56
Jul 28 Aleksandr Aksinin, Russian athlete (Olympic gold, 4×100m relay 1980; bronze 1976), dies at 65
Jul 28 Bent Fabric [Fabricius-Bjerre], Danish pianist and composer (Alley Cat), dies at 95 [1]
Jul 28 Gisele Halimi, Tunisian-French lawyer, feminist and author, dies at 93
Jul 28 John McNamara, American MLB manager (American League Manager of the Year 1986; Boston Red Sox), dies at 88
Jul 29 Andy Haden, New Zealand rugby union lock (41 Tests; 117 All Black games, 8 as captain; Auckland), dies from chronic lymphocytic leukemia at 69
Jul 29 Mike Gillespie, American college baseball coach (College World Series 1998, Collegiate Coach of the Year 1998, USC), dies from a stroke at 80
Jul 30 Lee Teng-hui, Taiwanese statesman (Taiwan's 1st popularly elected President 1988–2000), dies at 97 [1]
Jul 31 Alan Parker, English director (Bugsy Malone, Midnight Express), dies at 76 [1]
Jul 31 Stephen Tataw, Cameroonian soccer right-back (63 caps; captain Cameroon national team FIFA World Cup 1990, 94), dies at 57