TODAY IN HISTORY
• Int’l Lefthanders Day • 2015 - Nigeria
Burial rites of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade began with a seven-day curfew as town criers from the palace moved round the town driving away traders from the markets and passersby on their path. • President Muhammadu Buhari charged the new service chiefs to synergize with other nation’s security apparatus and end Boko Haram insurgents within three months.
• 2014 - S/korea
At the Int’l. Congress of mathematicians in South Korea, Stanford Prof. Maryam Mirzakhani, an Iranian-born mathematician, became the first woman to be awarded the Fields Medal for her work in understanding the mathematical symmetry of curved surfaces and saddle-shaped spaces.
• 2010 - USA
Pres. Barack Obama forcefully endorsed building a mosque near ground zero, saying the country’s founding principles demand no less.
• 2008 - China
Michael Phelps swam into history as the winningest Olympic athlete ever with his 10th and 11th career gold medals, and five world records in 5 events at the Beijing Games.
• 2006 - Cuba
On his 80th birthday, Fidel Castro cautioned Cubans that he faced a long recovery from surgery and advised them to prepare for "adverse news," but he urged them to stay optimistic.
• 2004 - Greece
The Olympics opened in Athens. A sea of athletes under 202 flags parted to let a Greek windsurfing champion jog across the stadium and climb to the Olympic cauldron, which dipped on its slender 102foot arm to receive the spark from his torch. Women’s wrestling debuted as an Olympic sport
• 2002 - Nigeria
The House of Representatives called for the resignation of Pres. Obasanjo.
• 1999 - Germany
Tennis player Steffi Graf retired from the sport she had dominated for two decades.
• 1961 - Germany
Berlin was divided as East Germany sealed off the border between the city's eastern and western sectors. Two days later, work began on the Berlin Wall.
• 1910 - UK
Florence Nightingale (90), British nurse famous for her care of British soldiers during the Crimean War, died.