THIS day, and no doubt this year, will most likely have a series of negative associations when reflected upon in years to come, although in South Africa at the very least, we can commemorate the opening up of vaccinations to all eligible citizens on 20 August 2021.
Let’s take some time to distract our minds from the relentless third wave and look back in time to 10 significant events that happened on this day.
1. 2012: South Africa becomes the top-ranked test cricket nation With Gary Kirsten as coach – fresh from his successful campaign of taking India to the championship position in the 2011 Cricket World Cup – South Africa was set to tour England to play three test matches, five One Day Internationals and three Twenty20 international matches. With the assistance of explorer Mike Horn, Kirsten put the team through gruelling physical training to improve mental strength. It worked, and South Africa went on to defeat England and take the top title.
2. 2008: Jamaica’s Usain Bolt sets new 200m record at Beijing Olympics It was on this day that the aptly named Bolt broke the record during an epic performance at the Summer Olympics. He also took gold in the 100m event, finishing in a record 9.69 seconds, securing three world record times throughout the Olympics.
3. 2004: America’s Michael Phelps wins the 100/200m butterfly double at the Athens Olympics Another significant Olympian, Phelps won his eighth medal on this day at the Summer Olympics – six gold and two bronze. This tally tied him with Soviet gymnast Aleksandr Dityatin for the most medals ever won by a competitor at a single Olympic Games.
4. 1998: Retaliation for US embassy bombings It’s not all good memories as this day also commemorates when the Americans retaliated against the bombings of embassies in Kenya and Tanzania on 7 August 1998, which killed nearly 200 people. Thirteen days later, the US military launched cruise missile attacks against alleged al-Qaida camps in Afghanistan, as well as a suspected chemical plant in Sudan.
5. 1994: South Africa’s Vuyani Bungu wins IBF World Boxing Title The South African junior featherweight boxer turned pro in 1987, but it was on this day in 1994 that he took the title with a shocking upset victory over Kennedy McKinney. This fight was named by Ring Magazine as the ‘Upset of the Year’. Bungu went on to defend his title 13 times before relinquishing the belt in 2000 to move up to featherweight.
6. 1993: Mother Teresa hospitalised with malaria Born in 1910 in Skopje – now the capital of North Macedonia but once a part of the Kosovo Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire – Mother Teresa moved to Ireland and then India where she lived most of her life. In 1950, she founded the Missionaries of Charity, a Roman Catholic religious congregation with more than 4 500 nuns, active in 133 countries. There was grave concern when she contracted malaria but she recovered and went on to live another four years, dying on 5 September 1997. She won the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize and was canonised on 4 September 2016.
7. 1991: The rise and fall of the United Democratic Front (UDF) Established on this day in 1983 at Rocklands Community Centre in Cape Town, the UDF became one of the most prominent anti-apartheid movements, comprising more than 400 organisations including workers unions, churches, civic and student organisations. However, with the unbanning of the ANC and the dismantling of apartheid, the UDF lost its function and was disbanded on this day in 1991.
8. 1991: Estonia declares independence from USSR This day was actually the restoration of independence for Estonia, which came after a Soviet military coup attempt in Moscow. Estonian politicians declared the nation’s independence while Soviet tanks attempted to quell the independence movement and Soviet paratroopers tried to cut communication by taking charge of the Tallinn TV tower.
9. 1986: American Patrick Sherrill kills 14 colleagues Ever heard the term ‘going postal’? Well, it originates on this day in 1986 when US postal worker Patrick Sherrill, shot 20 of his co-workers before turning the gun on himself. He ended up killing a total of 14 people in what was the deadliest incident of workplace violence in the United States.
10. 1977: NASA launches Voyager 2 Back in the 70s when NASA was still very active, it launched the space probe Voyager 2 to study outer planets – Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune – and interstellar space. It’s actually the only spacecraft to have visited the giant ice planets Jupiter and Saturn. Voyager 2 remains in contact with earth, despite an eight-month break in 2020 when maintenance on the Deep Space Network interrupted outbound contact. Take some inspiration and do something positive to make today a truly memorable day in history.
