Historical Events
- Feb 1 Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, 'Nobel Prize for Engineering' awarded to Masato Sagawa for inventing the neodymium-iron-boron (Nd-Fe-B) magnet [1]
- Feb 2 More than one million Afghans have fled the country for Iran since October due to the country's economic crisis, according to immigration authorities threatening a new migrant crisis [1]
- Feb 3 Austria brings into force its vaccine mandate for all, first country in Europe to do so
- Feb 3 ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi blows himself and his family up during a raid by US Special Forces in Syria [1]
- Feb 4 Cyclone Batsirai strikes Madagascar less than a month after Cyclone Ana, causing widespread damage, killing at least 92 people and displacing 91,000 [1]
- Feb 4 XXIV Olympic Winter Games open in Beijing, China
- Feb 5 Body of five-year old Moroccan boy Rayan Oram retrieved from the well he fell down four days previously after huge rescue effort [1]
- Feb 5 NHL All Star Game, T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada: Metropolitan All Stars win four-team, 3-on-3 tournament; MVP: Claude Giroux LW Philadelphia Flyers
- Feb 5 Sanaz Toossi's play "English" premieres off-Broadway at Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theater (Pulitzer Prize for Drama 2023) [1]
- Feb 5 Six days before his 50th birthday, 11-time world surfing champion Kelly Slater wins his 8th Pipeline title beating 22-year old Hawaiian Seth Moniz in the final
- Feb 6 NFL Pro Bowl, Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, Nevada: AFC beats NFC, 41-35; MVPs: Justin Herbert, QB LA Chargers; Maxx Crosby, DE LV Raiders
- Feb 6 Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declares a state of emergency over a trucker protest against a covid vaccination mandate on the US-Canada border [1]
Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee
Feb 6 Queen Elizabeth II becomes the first British monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking seventy years on the throne [1]
Macron Meets Putin
Feb 7 French President Emmanuel Macron meets with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Moscow amid build-up of Russian troops on border with Ukraine
- Feb 8 Austrian alpine skier Matthias Mayer narrowly retains his Olympic Super-G title from American Ryan Cochran-Siegle at the Beijing Winter Games; Mayer's 3rd Olympic gold medal
Adele's BRIT Wins
Feb 8 BRIT Awards: Adele wins best artist, song and album of the year
- Feb 8 Horn of Africa with 13 million people now facing humanitarian crisis amid drought where the rainy season has failed three years in a row, according to UN World Food Program [1]
- Feb 9 Nearly four million bottles of beer destroyed in large crackdown on alcohol in northern Nigerian state of Kano, where alcohol prohibited under Sharia law [1]
- Feb 11 Australia lists the koala as endangered for the first time in Queensland, New South Wales and ACT after a steep decline in numbers [1]
- Feb 12 French forces say they have killed 40 fighters in air attacks in Burkina Faso linked to deadly attacks on Benin border [1]
- Feb 13 Canadian police arrest truckers who have protested a vaccine mandate for blocking Ambassador's Bridge, between Detroit and Windsor, for a week at the busiest land border crossing in North America [1]
- Feb 13 Marte Olsbu Røiseland of Norway wins the women's biathlon pursuit for her third gold medal of the Beijing Winter Olympics (women's sprint & mixed relay)
- Feb 13 Quentin Fillon Maillet of France adds the biathlon pursuit to his individual gold medal at the Beijing Winter Olympics
Super Bowl
Feb 13 Super Bowl LVI halftime show features Hip Hop legends Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige, Eminem and 50 Cent
- Feb 13 Super Bowl LVI, SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA: Los Angeles Rams beat Cincinnati Bengals, 23-20; MVP: Cooper Kupp, LA Rams, WR
- Feb 14 The megadrought affecting the American Southwest is now considered the worst for 1,200 years according to scientists [1]
- Feb 15 Floods and landslides after the heaviest rain in a century in Petrópolis, Brazil, leaves 146 people dead with 191 missing [1]
- Feb 15 In the only podium sweep of the Beijing Winter Olympics, Germany takes all 3 medals in the 2-man bobsleigh; Francesco Friedrich and Thorsten Margis win gold
The Music Man
Feb 15 Revival of Meredith Willson's musical "The Music Man", starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, opens at Winter Garden Theater, NYC
- Feb 16 Johannes Høsflot Klæbo teams with Erik Valnes to win the men's team sprint for Norway and clinch the cross country freestyle sprint double at the Beijing Winter Olympics
- Feb 17 28,000 women apply for 30 jobs driving trains after they are advertised for women in Saudi Arabia for the first time [1]
- Feb 18 Johannes Thingnes Bø of Norway wins his 4th biathlon gold medal of the Beijing Winter Olympics when he takes out the men's mass start
- Feb 18 Scientific study says the sudden drop in emissions due to COVID-19 shutdowns caused the record rainfall in eastern China in 2020 that killed hundreds [1]
- Feb 18 Storm Eunice [Zeynep/Nora] moves across Europe and the UK with gusts of 120mph, killing at least 17, cutting off power to millions [1]
- Feb 19 Alexander Bolshunov, representing Russian Olympic Committee, wins men's 50k freestyle cross country gold in Beijing to become only 2nd man to achieve 30k/50k double at a Winter Olympics
- Feb 20 64th Daytona 500: On owner Roger Penske's 85th birthday, 23 year-old rookie Austin Cindric works his way through numerous crashes over the closing laps to win from Bubba Wallace
- Feb 20 Britain's 95-year-old Queen Elizabeth II tests positive for COVID-19
- Feb 20 Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance Dam (Gerd), Africa's controversial and biggest-ever hydroelectric project on the Blue Nile, begins generating electricity [1]
- Feb 20 Hannah Green of Australia becomes first woman to win a mix-gender golf tournament over 72 holes; closes with 5-under 66 for a 4-stroke win in TPS Murray River on the PGA Tour of Australasia
NBA All-Star Game
Feb 20 NBA All-Star Game, Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Arena, Cleveland: Team LeBron beats Team Durant, 163-160; MVP: Stephen Curry (50 points, record 16 x 3s)
- Feb 20 Therese Johaug of Norway wins women's 30 kilometre freestyle cross-country for the individual golden trifecta (10k, 15k, 30k) at the Beijing Winter Olympics; her fourth career Olympic gold medal
- Feb 20 XXIV Olympic Winter Games close in Beijing, China; Norway finishes with record 16 gold medals
- Feb 21 60 people die in an explosion at an unregulated gold mine near Gaoua, Burkina Faso [1]
- Feb 21 Australia's international border reopens to vaccinated tourists after 704 days, nearly two years [1]
- Feb 21 Colombia's Constitutional Court, its highest court, decriminalizes abortion [1]
- Feb 21 Russian leader Vladimir Putin recognises Russia-backed separatists in two Ukrainian regions, ordering in troops for "peacekeeping functions" [1]
- Feb 22 Three white men convicted of killing black jogger Ahmaud Arbery found guilty of federal hate crimes, in Georgia [1]
- Feb 22 US Women soccer players settle their lawsuit with US soccer federation for $24 million and a promise to equalise pay [1]
- Feb 24 Russian leader Vladimir Putin announces the start of a three day “special military operation” in Ukraine to "demilitarize" the country. Moments before Russia launched a full-scale pre-dawn and unprovoked invasion by land, air and sea, with bombings in several cities. [1]
- Feb 24 Zahir Zakir Jaffer sentenced to death in Islamabad, Pakistan for the rape, murder and beheading of Noor Muqaddam after she refused to marry him, highlighting violence towards women in the country [1]
- Feb 26 'Rain bomb' due to a slow-moving low pressure trough begins major flooding in south-east Queensland, Australia, leaving at least seven people dead [1]
- Feb 26 Scientists publish findings into "lost" continent Balkanatolia, that linked southern Europe with Asia, providing passageway for animal migrations 35 to 38 million years ago [1]
- Feb 27 Countries sanction Russia for its invasion of Ukraine; EU closes its airspace to Russian planes, Russian banks excluded from worldwide Swift payment system, Sweden sends arms to Ukraine
- Feb 27 EU warns Russian invasion of Ukraine means Europe facing major humanitarian crisis, 18 million Ukrainians displaced with four million refugees fleeing the country
- Feb 28 Russia shells the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, while a 40 mile Russian military convoy approaches capital city of Kyiv
- Feb 28 UN Landmark climate change report warns climate change outpacing human efforts to adapt, with best-case scenario rise of 1.5C, 14% of species face "very high risk of extinction" [1]
Famous Deaths
- Feb 1 Easton McMorris, West Indian cricket batsman (13 Tests, 1 x 100; Jamaica), dies at 86
- Feb 1 Glenn Wheatley, Australian rock bassist (The Masters Apprentices), and talent manager (Little River Band; John Farnham), dies of COVID-19 complications at 74
- Feb 1 Maurizio Zamparini, Italian football executive (owner/director Palermo FC 2002–18), dies from complications of peritonitis at 80
- Feb 1 Richard L. Tierney, American sci-fi author (Winds of Zarr, Red Sonja), dies at 85
- Feb 1 Shintaro Ishihara, Japanese author and politician (Governor of Tokyo), dies at 89
- Feb 2 Bill Fitch, American Basketball HOF coach (NBA C'ship 1981, Boston Celtics; NBA Coach of the Year 1976, 80; NBA All-Star coach 1982; Cleveland Cavaliers; NJ Nets, Houston Rockets, LA Clippers), dies at 89
- Feb 2 Hamid Zouba, Algerian soccer manager (Algerian national team x 6 separate spells), dies at 86
- Feb 2 Monica Vitti [Maria Ceciarelli], Italian actress (L'Avventura; Tigers in Lipstick; Duck in Orange Sauce), dies of Dementia with Lewy bodies disease at 90
- Feb 2 Mosese Taga, Fijian rugby union front rower (48 Tests; Suva RFU, Nabua RUFC), dies at 57
- Feb 2 Roy Purdon, New Zealand harness-racing trainer (21 x NZ trainers premierships; 4 x NZ cup winners; 54 x Group One wins), dies at 94
- Feb 3 Tom Kiernan, Irish rugby union fullback (54 caps [captain 24]; British & Irish Lions 5 [captain 1968]; Munster RUFC), dies at 83
- Feb 4 Kerry Chater, Canadian musician (Gary Puckett & Union Gap - "Young Girl") and Nashville songwriter, dies at 76
- Feb 4 Zolani Marali, South African boxer (IBO World Super Bantamweight title 2003–04; IBO Super Featherweight title 2009), dies at 44
- Feb 5 Pat Britt, American jazz saxophonist, flute player, and producer, dies at 82
- Feb 6 Abdelmalek Ali Messaoud, Algerian soccer defender (38 caps; USM Alger, USM Annaba), dies from COVID-19 at 66
- Feb 6 Frank McAtamney, New Zealand rugby union prop (1 Test; Otago 38 games), dies at 87
- Feb 6 George Crumb, American composer (Pulitzer Prize, 1968 - Echoes of Time and the River; Vox Balaenae), and educator, dies at 92 [1]
- Feb 6 Henry Thillberg, Swedish soccer midfielder (22 caps; Malmö FF), dies from heart failure at 91
- Feb 6 Lata Mangeshkar, Indian playback singer, dies at 92
- Feb 6 Ronnie Hellström, Swedish soccer goalkeeper (77 caps; Hammarby IF, 1. FC Kaiserslautern; Sweden Player of the Year 1971, 78), dies at 72
- Feb 7 Bertram Fields, American entertainment lawyer, and novelist, dies at 93
- Feb 8 (Arthur) Bamber Gascoigne, English television presenter (University Challenge, 1962-87), and author, dies at 87
- Feb 8 Gerald Williams, American MLB baseball outfielder, 1992-2005 (NY Yankees, and 5 other teams), dies of cancer at 55
- Feb 8 Luc Montagnier, French virologist (Nobel Prize 2008, discovered HIV), dies at 89 [1]
- Feb 9 Betty Davis (née Mabry); American model, soul and funk singer-songwriter ("They Say I'm Different"; "Nasty Gal"), dies at 77
- Feb 9 Ian McDonald, British rock musician (saxophone, keyboards, guitar) (King Crimson, 1968-69; Foreigner, 1976-80), dies of cancer at 75 [1]
- Feb 9 Jeremy Giambi, American MLB baseball player, 1998-2003 (Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, and two other teams), takes his own life at 47
- Feb 9 Johnny Raper, Australian rugby league lock (33 Tests, 6 World Cup games; Newtown RLFC, St. George RLFC; Inaugural RL "Immortal") and coach (St. George, RLFC, Cronulla RLFC), dies from dementia at 82
- Feb 9 Joseph Horovitz, British composer (Captain Noah and his Floating Zoo; Euphonium Concerto; Rumpole of the Bailey), dies at 95
- Feb 10 Nikolai Manoshin, Russian soccer midfielder (8 caps; FC Torpedo Moscow, CSKA Moscow) and manager (Somalia, Yemen, Mali), dies at 83
- Feb 10 Olsen Filipaina, New Zealand rugby league five eighth (28 Tests; Auckland RL, Balmain RLFC, Eastern Suburbs RLFC, North Sydney DRLFC), dies from kidney failure at 64
- Feb 10 Stefan Żywotko, Polish soccer coach (JS Kabylie; 7 x Algerian league titles, African Cup Of Champions 1981, 90; Algerian Cup 1986), dies at 102
- Feb 12 Aurelio de la Vega, Cuban-American composer (Adiós; Variación del Recuerdo), educator (California State University, 1959-92), and poet, dies at 96
- Feb 12 Brian Kan, Chinese thoroughbred horse trainer (5 x Hong Kong champion trainer; 5 x HK Derby winners), dies at 84
- Feb 12 Howard Grimes, American soul music session drummer (Al Green; Ann Peeples), dies of kidney failure at 80
Ivan Reitman (1946-2022)
Feb 12 Slovak-Canadian director and producer (Stripes; Ghostbusters; Dave; Private Parts), dies at 75
- Feb 12 William Kraft, American timpanist, percussionist (Los Angeles Percussion Ensemble), conductor, and composer (The Demise of Suriyodhaya; Avalanche), dies at 98
Eduardo Romero (1954-2022)
Feb 13 Argentine golfer (Tradition 2006, US Senior Open 2008), dies at 67
- Feb 13 Johnny Whiteley, English rugby league back rower (15 Tests GB, 1 England; Hull RLFC 417 games) and coach (GB, England, Hull RLFC, Hull KR), dies at 91
- Feb 14 Julio Morales, Uruguayan soccer striker (24 caps; Racing Montevideo, Nacional, Austria Wien), dies at 76
- Feb 14 Sandy Nelson, American rock drummer ("Teen Beat"; "Let There Be Drums"), dies of stroke complications at 83
- Feb 15 (Alokesh) "Bappi" Lahiri, Indian disco and film music composer, singer, and record producer, dies of a lung infection at 69
- Feb 15 Józef Zapędzki, Polish sport shooter (Olympic gold 25m rapid fire pistol 1968, 72), dies at 92
P. J. O'Rourke (1947-2022)
Feb 15 American journalist and satirist (Parliament of Whores; National Lampoon), dies of lung cancer at 74
- Feb 15 Rustam Akramov, Uzbek soccer coach (Uzbekistan 1992-94; India 1995-97), dies at 73
- Feb 16 Vasilis Botinos, Greek soccer winger (12 caps; Olympiacos FC 140 games, 120 goals), dies from COVID-19 at 77
- Feb 17 Dallas Good, Canadian alt-country-rock guitarist and singer-songwriter (The Sadies -"Through Strange Eyes"), dies at 48
- Feb 17 Máté Fenyvesi, Hungarian soccer forward (76 caps; Ferencváros 343 games) and politician (MP 1998-2006), dies at 88
- Feb 17 Steve Burtenshaw, English soccer manager (Sheffield Wednesday, Everton, QPR, Arsenal) and midfielder (Brighton & HA 237 games), dies at 86
- Feb 18 Héctor Pulido, Mexican football midfielder (43 caps; Cruz Azul, Club Jalisco AC), dies at 79
- Feb 18 Mauri, Spanish soccer midfielder (5 caps; Athletic Bilbao 246 games), dies at 87
- Feb 19 Charley Taylor, American Pro Football HOF wide receiver and running back (8 × Pro Bowl; First-team All-Pro 1967; Washington Redskins), dies at 80
- Feb 19 Emile Francis, Canadian Hockey HOF coach (NY Rangers 1965-75; St. Louis Blues) and executive (GM: NY Rangers, St. Louis Blues, Hartford Whalers), dies at 95 [1]
- Feb 19 Gary Brooker, British rock keyboardist and singer (Procol Harum -"A Whiter Shade of Pale"), dies of cancer at 76
- Feb 19 HO de Villiers, South African rugby union fullback (14 caps; Villager FC, Western Province), dies at 76
- Feb 19 Nigel Butterley, Australian pianist, composer (The True Samaritan), educator, and radio broadcaster, dies at 86 [1]
- Feb 20 Aleksandr Sidorenko, Ukrainian swimmer (Olympic gold USSR 400m IM 1980; World C'ship gold 200m IM 1982), dies at 61
- Feb 20 Joni James [Joan Babbo], American pop singer ("Why Don't You Believe Me?"; "How Important Can It Be?"), dies at 91
- Feb 21 Eduardo González Pálmer, Mexican soccer forward (4 caps; Club América), dies at 87
- Feb 22 Anna Karen [Ann McCall] British comic actress (On the Buses - "Olive"; EastEnders, 1996-2017 - "Aunt Sal"), dies in a house fire at 85
- Feb 22 Mark Lanegan, American grunge-rock singer-songwriter (Screaming Trees; Queens of the Stone Age), dies at 57
- Feb 23 Ion Adrian Zare, Romanian soccer defender (7 caps; FC Bihor, BFC Siófok), dies at 62
- Feb 23 Jaakko Kuusisto, Finnish violinist, composer, and conductor, dies of brain cancer at 48
- Feb 23 Joeli Vidiri, Fijian rugby union winger (7 Tests Fiji, 2 New Zealand; Auckland RU, Barbarian FC), dies from COVID-19 at 48
- Feb 24 Ivanka Khristova, Bulgarian athlete (Olympic gold women's shot put 1976), dies at 80
- Feb 24 Jan Gomola, Polish soccer goalkeeper (7 caps; Górnik Zabrze), dies at 80
- Feb 24 John Landy, Australian athlete (2nd man to run sub-4 min mile; WR mile (3:58.0) and 1500m (3:41.8+) 1954; Olympic bronze 1956), dies at 91
- Feb 24 Kathleen Nord, German swimmer (Olympic gold GDR 200m butterfly 1988; World C'ship gold 400m medley 1986), dies at 56
- Feb 24 Ken Burrough, American football wide receiver (Pro Bowl 1975, 77; Houston Oilers), dies at 73
- Feb 24 Sally Kellerman, American actress (M*A*S*H (film); Back to School; The Player), and singer, dies of heart failure at 84
- Feb 24 Va'aiga Tuigamala, Samoan rugby union centre/winger (19 Tests NZ, 23 Samoa; Newcastle Falcons, Auckland RU) and rugby league (2 Tests, Samoa; Wigan Warriors), dies from diabetes at 52
- Feb 25 Dick Versace, American basketball coach (Bradley University, Indiana Pacers), broadcaster (TNT) and executive (GM Memphis Grizzlies), dies at 81
- Feb 26 Danny Ongais, American auto racer (inducted Motorsports Hall of Fame of America 2000), dies at 79
- Feb 27 Hanna Havrylets, Ukrainian composer (David's Psalms; Ėlegiya), and educator, dies of an aneurysm at 63
Sonny Ramadhin (1929-2022)
Feb 27 West Indian cricket spin bowler (43 Tests, 158 wickets, BB 7/49), dies at 92
Year of the Rabbit
Year of the Dragon
Year of the Snake
Year of the Horse
Year of the Goat/Sheep
Year of the Monkey