Summary of the Day ✨ 22 August (22/08)
Violence erupted across multiple continents as ethnic clashes in Kenya claimed over 50 lives, a plane crash in Ukraine killed all 170 passengers, and thieves stole famous paintings at gunpoint in Oslo. Meanwhile, sports history was made when the Texas Rangers scored 30 runs in a single game, while mathematician Grigori Perelman refused to accept the prestigious Fields Medal despite his groundbreaking work.
Historical Events 📜
- 2012: Ethnic clashes over grazing rights for cattle in Kenya’s Tana River District result in more than 52 deaths.
- 2007: The Texas Rangers defeat the Baltimore Orioles 30–3, the most runs scored by a team in modern Major League Baseball history.
- 2006: Pulkovo Aviation Enterprise Flight 612 crashes near the Russian border over eastern Ukraine, killing all 170 people on board.
- 2006: Grigori Perelman is awarded the Fields Medal for his proof of the Poincaré conjecture in mathematics but refuses to accept the medal.
- 2004: Versions of The Scream and Madonna, two paintings by Edvard Munch, are stolen at gunpoint from a museum in Oslo, Norway.
- 2003: Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama Roy Moore is suspended after refusing to comply with a federal court order to remove a rock inscribed with the Ten Commandments from the lobby of the Alabama Supreme Court building.
- 1999: China Airlines Flight 642 crashes at Hong Kong International Airport, killing three people and injuring 208 more.
- 1992: FBI sniper Lon Horiuchi shoots and kills Vicki Weaver during an 11-day siege at her home at Ruby Ridge, Idaho.
- 1991: Iceland is the first nation in the world to recognize the independence of the Baltic states.
- 1989: Nolan Ryan strikes out Rickey Henderson to become the first Major League Baseball pitcher to record 5,000 strikeouts.
- 1985: British Airtours Flight 28M suffers an engine fire during takeoff at Manchester Airport. The pilots abort but due to inefficient evacuation procedures 55 people are killed, mostly from smoke inhalation.
- 1981: Far Eastern Air Transport Flight 103 disintegrates in mid-air and crashes in Sanyi Township, Miaoli County, Taiwan. All 110 people on board are killed.
- 1978: Nicaraguan Revolution: The FSLN seizes the National Congress of Nicaragua, along with over a thousand hostages.
- 1978: The District of Columbia Voting Rights Amendment is passed by the U.S. Congress, although it is never ratified by a sufficient number of states.
- 1973: The Congress of Chile votes in favour of a resolution condemning President Salvador Allende’s government and demands that he resign or else be unseated through force and new elections.
Famous Births 👶
- 2005: Stiliana Nikolova, Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast
- 2003: Cooper Connolly, Australian cricketer
- 2001: LaMelo Ball, American basketball player
- 1997: Maxx Crosby, American football player
- 1997: Fanum, American streamer
- 1997: Lautaro Martínez, Argentine footballer
- 1996: Jessica-Jane Applegate, British Paralympic swimmer
- 1996: Jeon So-min, South Korean singer-songwriter
- 1995: Dua Lipa, English singer-songwriter
- 1994: Israel Broussard, American actor
- 1994: Olli Määttä, Finnish ice hockey player
- 1993: Laura Dahlmeier, German biathlete (died 2025)
- 1993: Dillon Danis, American mixed martial artist
- 1992: Ema Burgić Bucko, Bosnian tennis player
- 1991: Federico Macheda, Italian footballer
Notable Deaths 🕊️
- 2024: Arthur J. Gregg, American military officer (born 1928)
- 2023: Toto Cutugno, Italian singer-songwriter (born 1943)
- 2021: Rod Gilbert, Canadian ice hockey player (born 1941)
- 2018: Ed King, American musician (born 1949)
- 2018: Krishna Reddy, Indian printmaker, sculptor and teacher (born 1925)
- 2017: Michael J. C. Gordon, British Computer scientist (born 1948)
- 2016: S. R. Nathan, 6th President of Singapore (born 1924)
- 2016: Toots Thielemans, Belgian and American jazz musician (born 1922)
- 2015: Arthur Morris, Australian cricketer and journalist (born 1922)
- 2015: Ieng Thirith, Cambodian academic and politician (born 1932)
- 2015: Eric Thompson, English race car driver and book dealer (born 1919)
- 2014: U. R. Ananthamurthy, Indian author, poet, and playwright (born 1932)
- 2014: Emmanuel Kriaras, Greek lexicographer and philologist (born 1906)
- 2014: Pete Ladygo, American football player and coach (born 1928)
- 2014: Noella Leduc, American baseball player (born 1933)
Holidays & Observances 🎉
- Christian feast day:
Immaculate Heart of Mary (Roman Catholic calendar of 1960) - Christian feast day:
Queenship of Mary - Christian feast day:
August 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics) - International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief
- Earliest day on which National Heroes’ Day (Philippines) can fall, while August 28 is the latest; celebrated on the fourth Monday in August.
- Flag Day (Russia)
- Madras Day (Chennai and Tamil Nadu, India)