2004 in sports

Events

On January 28, International Olympic Committee Vice-President Kim Un-yong is arrested on charges of corruption in Seoul. Prosecutors arrest Kim minutes after an arrest warrant is issued by the Seoul District Court, and the 72-year-old was put behind bars after his pre-trial detention was approved.

On April 27, the International Olympic Committee takes out insurance in case the Athens Olympic Games are canceled due to terrorism or natural disasters.

On May 18, the International Olympic Committee announced the list of cities accepted as candidates to host the 2012 Olympic Games. The five candidate cities are Paris, New York, Moscow, London and Madrid.

2004 Summer Olympics

The 2004 Olympics opened in Athens, Greece on August 13.

Athletics

Cross-country running
- January 3 - Winners from the 2004 Great Winter Run X-country race at Newcastle, England:
  - Women's 6.3 km: Tirunesh Dibada, Ethiopia 21:01
  - Men's 8.0 km: Sileshi Sihine, Ethiopia 26:15
London Marathon
- Men's Evans Rutto, Kenya 2:06:18
- Women's Margaret Okayo, Kenya 2:22:35
Boston Marathon
- Men's Timothy Cherigat Kenya 2:10:37
- Women's Catherine Ndereba Kenya 2:24:27
United States Olympic Track and Field trials, Sacramento, California:
- July 10 - Marion Jones finishes fourth in the qualifying for the 100 meter dash, and therefore fails to qualify for the 2004 Summer Olympics in that event. (Jones did qualify for the Olympics in the long jump.)
- July 11 - Tim Montgomery, current world record holder in the men's 100 meter run, fails to qualify for the 2004 Summer Olympics, finishing 7th out of 8 competitors in the trials finals.
New York Marathon, Nov 7
- Men's Hendrik Ramaala, South Africa 2:09:28
- Women's Paula Radcliffe, Great Britain 2:23:10

Auto Racing

Stock car racing (NASCAR):
- February 15 - Daytona 500: won by Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- November 21st - Kurt Busch wins the 2004 Nextel Cup at the conclusion of a ten-race "playoff" by seven points.
Indy Racing League:
- May 30 - Indianapolis 500: won by Buddy Rice
Formula One:
- August 15 - Ferrari clinch Formula One constructors title
- August 29 - Michael Schumacher clinches seventh Formula One title
24 hours of Le Mans
- June - Tom Kristensen / Rinaldo Capello / Seiji Ara driving an Audi R8 with Audi Sport Japan Team Goh win the LMP1 class and overall victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours.
  - The LMP2 category was won by the #32 Interport Racing Lola with drivers Bill Binnie, Clint Field, and Rick Sutherland.
  - The GTS category was won by the #65 Chevrolet Corvette with drivers Oliver Gavin, Olivier Beretta, and Jan Magnussen.
  - The GT category was won by the #90 White Lightning Porsche with drivers Sascha Maassen, Jörg Bergmeister, and Patrick Long.
V8 Supercar:
- March - Marcos Ambrose (Ford Falcon) won Adelaide 500
- November - Andrews Jones (Ford Falcon) won V8 Development (level two) Series
- October 10 - Greg Murphy and Rick Kelly (Holden Commodore) won Bathurst 1000
- September - Marcos Ambrose (Ford Falcon) won V8 Championship Series
Formula 3000:
- Vitantonio Liuzzi wins the title by comfortable margin;; championship is replaced by GP2 for the new year

Baseball

June 27 College World Series: Cal State Fullerton wins the NCAA College World Series, defeating Texas 3-2 to win the best-of-three championship series 2-0.

July 4: Eric Gagné's consecutive saves streak ended at 84 in a 6-5 Los Angeles Dodgers victory against the Arizona Diamondbacks

July 10: Barry Bonds breaks his own record for intentional walks received in a season; amazingly, he broke the former full-season record of 68 set in 2002 before the All-Star break. After three intentional walks in a 3-1 San Francisco Giants win over the Arizona Diamondbacks, his total stood at 71. He would end the season with 120.

August 8: At Comerica Park, Boston Red Sox outslugged the Detroit Tigers 11-9, despite knuckle baller Tim Wakefield giving up a record six home runs.

August 31: The Cleveland Indians win a 22-0 rout of the New York Yankees, who endured the worst shutout loss in league history.

September 17: At San Francisco, Barry Bonds became just the third player in MLB history to hit 700 home runs. Bonds joined the select company of Hall of Famers Hank Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) with his historic blast off San Diego Padres Jake Peavy in the third inning.

September 17: At Seattle, Ichiro Suzuki hits his 199th single of the season, breaking the major league baseball record of 198, set by Lloyd Waner in 1927.

September 29: Major League Baseball announces that the Montreal Expos will be moved to the Washington, DC area for the 2005 season.

October 1: Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners gets two base hits to break the 83-year-old record for most hits in a single season. The previous record, held by George Sisler, was 257 hits in a season.

October 20: The Boston Red Sox win the ALCS, coming back from 0-3 in the best-of-seven series against the New York Yankees.

October 26: Seibu Lions PL defeats Chunichi Dragons CL, 4 games to 3 in the Japan Series.

October 27: The Boston Red Sox sweep the St. Louis Cardinals, four games to none, to win the World Series for the first time in 86 years.

Basketball

NBA Finals: The Detroit Pistons, in a major upset, defeat the heavily-favored Los Angeles Lakers, 4 games to 1. It is the Pistons first NBA title in fourteen years.

November 19 - A game between the Detroit Pistons and the Indiana Pacers is called with less than a minute remaining after a fight between opposing players turns into a far more massive brawl between Pacers players and Pistons supporters. For more details on the brawl and its aftermath, see Pacers-Pistons brawl.

The Los Angeles Lakers dynasty is dismantled, after Shaquille O'Neal is traded to the Miami Heat, Phil Jackson retires, and many role players either sign with other teams (such as Derek Fisher) or retire (such as Rick Fox).

NCAA Men's Basketball Championship
- The UConn Huskies win 82-73 over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. UConn's Emeka Okafor is named Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four.

NCAA Women's Basketball Championship
- The UConn Huskies defeat the Tennessee Lady Volunteers, 70-61, making UConn the first school to win both the NCAA Division I men's and women's basketball championships in the same season. A Division II school, Central Missouri State, was the first to accomplish this double in 1984. UConn's Diana Taurasi is named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four.

August 25- The Puerto Rican National Basketball Team defeats the United States' Dream Team 92-73 on the opening game if the 2004 Summer Olympics. This marked the first time the Dream Team lost an Olympic Game.

Euroleague: Maccabi Tel-Aviv of Israel wins the final 118-74 over Fortitudo Bologna of Italy.

Chinese Basketball Association finals: Guangdong Southern Tigers defeat Bayi Rockets, 3 games to 1.

Boxing

March 13 - The world junior middleweight championship was unified as Shane Mosley lost to Winky Wright.
May 15 - Antonio Tarver won the WBC light-heavyweight title with a stunning second-round knockout of champion Roy Jones Jr.
July 30 - Danny Williams knocks out Mike Tyson in the fourth round of a non-championship bout.
August 16 - Robert Quiroga, former International Boxing Federation super flyweight champion, found stabbed to death.
September 18 - Bernard Hopkins successfully defends his undisputed middleweight title with a ninth-round knockout of Oscar De La Hoya.

Cricket

March 12 - Shane Warne becomes the first spinner in history to take 500 Test wickets.
March 13 - India beat Pakistan in the highest scoring one-day international ever (693 runs), in the opening match of their first Pakistan tour since 1989.
April - Ricky Ponting is named Leading Cricketer in the World by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.
April 2 - Zimbabwe Cricket Union announces the retirement of Heath Streak as captain of Zimbabwe. It is later revealed he was sacked, and 15 senior players withdraw from Zimbabwean cricket, citing political interference by Robert Mugabe's government in team selection.
April 12 - The West Indies' Brian Lara regains the individual Test innings record from Australian Matthew Hayden with 400 not out in the fourth Test against England in St. John's, Antigua.
May 8 - Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan breaks Courtney Walsh's world record of 519 Test wickets with his 520th wicket against Zimbabwe in Harare.
June 10 - Zimbabwe Cricket Union agrees to abandon any further Test matches in 2004, under pressure from International Cricket Council over substandard teams due to 15 striking players.
June 19 - September 4 - Inaugural Pro Cricket season, the first professional cricket tournament in the United States.
September 10 - September 25 - ICC Champions Trophy in England: West Indies beats England in the final.

Curling

2004 Nokia Brier:
- Final: (March 14) Nova Scotia (Mark Dacey) 10-9 Alberta (Randy Ferbey)
2004 Scott Tournament of Hearts:
- Final: (February 29) Canada (Colleen Jones) 7-4 Quebec (Marie-France Larouche)
2004 Ford World Curling Championship:
- Women's Final: (April 24) Canada (Colleen Jones) 8-4 Norway (Dordi Nordby)
- Men's Final: (April 25) Sweden (Peja Lindholm) 7-6 Germany (Sebastian Stock)
Canada Cup
- Women's Final: (January 10) Colleen Jones 8-7 Sherry Anderson
- Men's Final: (January 11) Randy Ferbey 10-3 John Morris
M&M Meat Shops National Final (January 25) Glenn Howard 5-3 Jeff Stoughton
PharmAssist Players' Championship Final (April 4) John Morris 7-5 Jeff Stoughton
2004 Canadian mixed curling championship Final: (January 18) Alberta (Shannon Kleibrink) 9-5 Ontario (Heath McCormick) Shannon Kleibrink becomes the first woman to skip and win the Canadian mixed curling championship. Last year, she was the first to skip and participate in the event, losing only in the final.
Canadian Senior Curling Championship
- Women's Final: (February 1) Ontario (Anne Dunn) 7-3 British Columbia (Kathy Smiley)
- Men's Final: (February 1) Newfoundland and Labrador (Bas Buckle) 9-8 Nova Scotia (Steve Ogden)
World Junior Curling Championships
- Women's Final: (March 27) Norway (Linn Githmark) 9-6 Canada (Jill Mouzar)
- Men's Final: (March 28) Sweden (Niklas Edin) 6-4 Switzerland (Stefan Rindisblacher)

Cycling

Giro d'Italia - won by Damiano Cunego of Italy. Sprinter Alessandro Petacchi wins nine stages. See 2004 Giro d'Italia
Tour de France -
- Overall (Yellow jersey) - Lance Armstrong, his record-setting sixth consecutive title.
- King of the Mountains (Polka dot jersey) - Richard Virenque, a record seventh title
- Points Classification (Green jersey) - Robbie McEwen
- Young Rider (White jersey) - Vladimir Karpets
- Team - T-Mobile Team

Field Hockey

World Competitions

Men's Olympic Qualifier Tournament in Madrid, Spain
- Gold Medal: The Netherlands
- Silver Medal: Spain
- Bronze Medal: Pakistan

Olympic Games (Men's Competition) in Athens, Greece
- Gold Medal: Australia
- Silver Medal: The Netherlands
- Bronze Medal: Germany

Men's Champions Trophy in Lahore, Pakistan
- Gold Medal: Spain
- Silver Medal: The Netherlands
- Bronze Medal: Pakistan

Women's Olympic Qualifier Tournament in Auckland, New Zealand
- Gold Medal: Japan
- Silver Medal: Spain
- Bronze Medal: New Zealand

Olympic Games (Women's Competition) in Athens, Greece
- Gold Medal: Germany
- Silver Medal: The Netherlands
- Bronze Medal: Argentina

Women's Champions Trophy in Rosario, Argentina
- Gold Medal: The Netherlands
- Silver Medal: Germany
- Bronze Medal: Argentina

Regional Competitions

Men's Pan American Cup in London, England
- Gold Medal: Argentina
- Silver Medal: Canada
- Bronze Medal: Chile

Women's Pan American Cup in Bridgetown, Barbados
- Gold Medal: Argentina
- Silver Medal: United States
- Bronze Medal: Canada

January 31 to February 5 - The 5th Asian women's hockey championship is held in New Delhi

Football (Rugby League)

May 15 - St Helens defeat Wigan Warriors 32-16 to win the Challenge Cup.
June 17 - Martin Gleeson and Sean Long are banned for four and three months respectively after placing bets on their side, St Helens, to lose a Super League match against the Bradford Bulls.
October 3 - Canterbury Bulldogs defeat Sydney Roosters 16-13 in the Grand Final to win the NRL premiership.
October 16 - Leeds Rhinos defeat Bradford Bulls 16-8 in the Super League Grand Final to become champions of Super League IX.
November 27 - Australia defeat Great Britain 44-4 in the final of the second Tri-Nations competition.

Football (Rugby Union)

Hong Kong Sevens - England beat Argentina 22-12
Super 12 - ACT Brumbies defeated Crusaders 47-38
Six Nations Championship - France (Grand Slam). Ireland win the Triple Crown.
Heineken Cup - London Wasps defeated Toulouse 27-20
Tri Nations Series - The Springboks of South Africa win due to bonus points, after all sides finish with two wins and two losses. The All Blacks of New Zealand retain the Bledisloe Cup.
International Rugby Board year-end awards:
- Player of the Year: Schalk Burger, South Africa
- Coach of the Year: Jake White, South Africa
- Team of the Year: South Africa

Football (Soccer)

February 14 - Tunisia beat Morocco 2-1 to clinch the first African Cup of Nations in the country's history.
May 26 - Porto defeat AS Monaco 3-0 in the UEFA Champions League final in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
July 4 - Greece surprising win the UEFA Euro 2004 football tournament, defeating the host nation Portugal 1-0.
July 25 - Brazil win the Copa América football tournament, defeating Argentina 4-2 on penalties.
August 7 - Japan win the 2004 Asian Cup football tournament, defeating China 3-1.
August 26 - United States win the Olympic women's football tournament, defeating Brazil 2-1 in extra time.
August 28 - Argentina win the Olympic men's football tournament, defeating Paraguay 1-0.
September 7 - Cienciano defeats Boca Juniors 4-2 on penalties to win the South American Recopa final in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA.
December 17 - Boca Juniors defeats Bolívar 2-1 on aggregate to win the Copa Sudamericana final in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

For fuller coverage, see: 2004 in football (soccer)

Gaelic Athletic Association

Camogie
- All-Ireland Camogie Champion: Tipperary
- National Camogie League: Tipperary

Gaelic football
- All-Ireland Senior Football Championship: Kerry 1-20 d. Mayo 2-9
- National Football League: Kerry 3-11 d. Galway 1-16
- Tommy Murphy Cup: Clare 1-11 d. Sligo 0-11

Ladies' Gaelic football
- All-Ireland Senior Football Champion: Galway
- National Football League: Mayo

Hurling
- All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship: Cork 0-17 d. Kilkenny 0-9
- National Hurling League:

Golf

January 15-16 - At the age of 14, golf prodigy Michelle Wie becomes the youngest woman (and only the fourth overall) to play at a PGA TOUR event, shooting 72-68 (even par) at the Sony Open at Waialae Country Club in her hometown of Honolulu. She missed the cut by one stroke.
February 29 - Annika Sörenstam wins her third ANZ Ladies Masters.
March 28 - Grace Park wins the first major of the LPGA season, the Kraft Nabisco Championship, by one shot over 17-year-old Aree Song. Michelle Wie finished fourth, four shots behind Park.
April 11 - Phil Mickelson wins The Masters, the first major of his career.
June 13 - Annika Sörenstam successfully defends her title in the second major of the LPGA season, the LPGA Championship.
July 18 - Todd Hamilton wins The Open at Royal Troon
August 15 - Vijay Singh wins the PGA Championship in a three-hole playoff with Chris DiMarco and Justin Leonard.
September 6 - Vijay Singh replaces Tiger Woods at the top of the world rankings, ending Woods' reign of five years and four weeks.
September 17-19 - Team Europe defeats Team USA 18½?9½ to retain the Ryder Cup. See 2004 Ryder Cup for more details.

Handball

January 22 to February 1 - The European Men's Handball Championship in Slovenia held.

Harness Racing

Windsong's Legacy becomes the seventh horse to win the North American Trotting Triple Crown.

Thoroughbred Horse Racing

Flat races

Australia
- November 2 - Makybe Diva wins the Melbourne Cup.
Canada
- June 27 - Niigon wins the Queen's Plate.
France
- October 3 - Bago wins the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Ireland
- June 27 - Grey Swallow wins the Irish Derby.
English Triple Crown
1. May 1 - Haafhd wins the 2000 Guineas.
2. June 5 - North Light wins the Epsom Derby.
3. September 11 - Rule of Law wins the St. Leger Stakes.
Other English races
- May 2 - Attraction wins the 1000 Guineas.
- June 4 - Ouija Board wins the Epsom Oaks.
United States Triple Crown
1. May 1 - Smarty Jones wins the Kentucky Derby.
2. May 15 - Smarty Jones wins the Preakness Stakes by a record margin of 11½ lengths.
3. June 5 - Birdstone wins the Belmont Stakes.
Other United States races
- April 30 - Ashado wins the Kentucky Oaks.
- August 28 - Birdstone wins the Travers Stakes.
October 30 - Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas:
- Ghostzapper wins the Breeders' Cup Classic.
- Ashado wins the Breeders' Cup Distaff.
- Ouija Board wins the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf.
- Wilko wins the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.
- Sweet Catomine wins the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies.
- Singletary wins the Breeders' Cup Mile.
- Speightstown wins the Breeders' Cup Sprint.
- Better Talk Now wins the Breeders' Cup Turf.

Steeplechases

United Kingdom
- March 18 - Best Mate wins a third consecutive Cheltenham Gold Cup.
- April 3 - Amberleigh House wins the Grand National.

Ice Hockey

January 4 - Under 17 World Championship at St. John's
- Gold Medal Game: Ontario 5, Pacific 2
- Bronze Medal Game: Team Quebec 3, United States 2
January 5 - 2004 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships at Helsinki, Finland
- Gold Medal Game: United States 4, Canada 3
- Bronze Medal Game: Finland 2, Czech Republic 1
February 12 - An independent audit by Arthur Levitt reveals that National Hockey League teams lost a collective US$273 million in 2003, and suggests the league is "on the road to oblivion."
April 6 - 2004 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships at Halifax, Nova Scotia
- Gold Medal Game: 2, 0
- Bronze Medal Game: 3, 2
April 10 - National Women's Hockey League championship at Brampton, Ontario
- Championship Final: Calgary X-Treme 6, Brampton Thunder 5 (OT)
April 18 - IIHF World Under-18 Championship at Minsk, Belarus
- Gold Medal Game: Russia 3, United States 2
- Bronze Medal Game: Czech Republic 3, Canada 2
April 25 - Allan Cup at Saint-Georges, Quebec
- Allan Cup Final: Saint-Georges Garaga 5, Ministlkwan Islanders 0
April 25 - Canadian National Midget Championship at Kenora, Ontario
- Gold Medal Game: Brandon Wheat Kings 2, College Charles-Lemoyne 1 (OT)
- Bronze Medal Game: Red Deer Optimist Chiefs 5, Kenora Stars 2
May 9 - 2004 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships at Prague, Czech Republic
- Gold Medal Game: 5, 3
- Bronze Medal Game: 1, 0 (SO)
May 23 - Memorial Cup at Kelowna, British Columbia
- 2004 Memorial Cup Final: Kelowna Rockets 2, Gatineau Olympques 1
June 7 - Stanley Cup - Tampa Bay Lightning defeat Calgary Flames 4 games to 3 to win the Stanley Cup.
September 14 - World Cup of Hockey at Toronto, Canada
- Final: Canada 3, Finland 2.
September 15 - NHL collective bargaining agreement expires. Commissioner Gary Bettman announces a lockout of NHLPA players (see: 2004-05 NHL lockout).
October 11 - Jean Perron named head coach of Israeli national under-18 hockey team

Kabaddi

November 21 - India wins the first-ever World Cup kabaddi championship defeating Iran in the final held at Mumbai.

Lacrosse

February 22 - National Lacrosse League - The East Division All-Stars defeat the West Division All-Stars 19-15 in the All Star Game.
May 7 - National Lacrosse League - Calgary Roughnecks defeat Buffalo Bandits 14-11 to win Champion's Cup
May 30 - LeMoyne College defeats Limestone 11-10 (2OT) for first Division II National Championship.
August 22 - Major League Lacrosse - Philadelphia Barrage defeat Boston Cannons 13-11 to win league championship at Boston
Clarington Green Gaels win the Founders Cup
Peterborough Lakers win the Mann Cup
Burnaby Lakers win the Minto Cup

Luge

January 4 - European Luge Championships at Oberhof, Germany
- Men's Doubles winner: Steffen Skel and Steffen Woeller, Germany, 1:22.633
- Women's Singles winner: Silke Kraushaar, Germany, 1:22.995
January 17 - World Cup event at Winterberg, Germany
- Men's Singles winner: Georg Hackl, Germany 1:51.211

Orienteering

First ever World Championship in Trail Orienteering held September 15-18 in Västerås, Sweden.

Netball

5 July- World champions, New Zealand's Silver Ferns, complete 3-0 test series win over Australia with 53-46 win at Hamilton, New Zealand.

Radiosport

Twelfth Amateur Radio Direction Finding World Championship held in Brno, Czech Republic.

Skiing & Snowboarding

Biathlon
- January 10- World Cup Biathlon event at Pokljuka, Slovenia winner, men's 12.5 km pursuit: Ole Einar Bjørndalen, Norway, 36:18.8
- January 14- World Cup Biathlon event at Ruhpolding, Germany winner, Women's 4x6K Relay winner: Germany, 1:18:37
- January 15- Men's 4x7.5K Relay winner: Belarus, 1:43:43.71
- January 17- World Cup Biathlon competition Men's 10 km Sprint winner: Halvard Hanevold, Norway 25:01.5
Cross-country skiing
- January 10- World Cup men's cross-country skiing competition at Otepaa, Finland winner, 30 km mass start: Frode Estil, Norway, 1:15:18.1
- January 17- World Cup cross-country ski meet at Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic
  - Men's 15 km classical style winner: Andrus Veerpalu, Estonia 42:27.6
  - Women's 10 km classical style winner: Gabriella Paruzzi, Italy 31:17.6
Downhill skiing
- January 4 - Men's World Cup Slalom Competition at Flachau, Austria winner: Kalle Palander, Finland, 1:42.24
- January 4 - Women's World Cip Giant Slalom Competition at Megeve, France winner: Alexandra Meissnitzer, Austria 1:24.98
- January 10 - Men's World Cup downhill race at Chamonix, France winner: Stephane Eberharter, Austria 1:59.08
- January 10- Women's World Cup downhill ski race at Veysonnaz, Switzerland winner: Renate Götschl, Austria 1:38.58
- January 11- Men's World Cup slalom at Chamonix, France winner: Giorgio Rocca, Italy 1:29.09
- January 17- Women's World Cup downhill race at Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy winner: Hilde Gerg, Germany 1:17.57
Freestyle skiing
- January 10- Ericsson World Freestyle skiing competition at Mont Tremblant, Quebec
  - Women's Moguls winner: Stephanie St. Pierre, Canada 24.25 points
  - Men's Moguls winner: Marc-Andre Moreau, Canada 25.14 points
- January 16- Freesyle FIS World Cup at Lake Placid, New York
  - Women's aerials winner: Jiao Wang, China 183.61
  - Men's aerials winner: Steve Omischl, Canada 246.01
- January 17
  - Women's Moguls winner: Jennifer Heil, Canada 26.77
  - Men's Moguls winner: Janne Lahtela, Finland 26.29
Giant slalom
- January 3 - Men's World Cup Giant Slalom Competition at Flachau, Austria winner: Benjamin Raich, Austria, 2:22.54
Nordic skiing
- January 4 - Nordic combined World Cup event at Schonach, Germany winner: Todd Lodwick, United States, 34:29.5
Ski jumping
- January 1 - The traditional New Year's Ski Jumping in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The Large Hill event was won by Sigurd Pettersen of Norway with 253.8 points.
- January 4 - Four Hills ski jumping tournament at Innsbruck, Austria. K120 winner: Peter Zonta, Slovenia, 265.2 points
Super-G
- January 11 - Women's World Cup super-G at Veysonnaz, Switzerland winner: Hilde Gerg, Germany, 1:21.34
- January 14 - Women's World Cup super-G at Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy winner: Genevieve Simard, Canada, 13.05
- January 16 - Women's World Cup super-G at Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy winner: Renate Götschl, Austria 1:10.59
Snowboarding
- January 3 - World Cup men's "big air" snowboarding competition at Klagenfurt, Austria winner: Aleksi Vanninen, Finland, 1,000 points
- January 6 - World Cup snowboard parallel slalom at Bad Gastein, Austria
  - Men's winner: Dejan Josir, Slovenia, 1,000
  - Women's winner: Jagna Kolasinska-Marczulajtis, Poland, 1,000
- January 10 - World Cup giant slalom race at L'Alpe d'Huez, France
  - Men's Parallel Giant Slalom winner: Urs Eiselin, Switzerland, 1,000
  - Women's Parallel Giant Slalom winner: Daniela Meuli, Switzerland, 1,000
- January 16 - World Cup cross at Arosa, Switzerland
  - Men's winner: Stefano Pozzolini, Italy 1,000
  - Women's winner: Karine Ruby, France 1,000
- January 17 -
  - Men's winner: Simone Malusa, Italy 1,000
  - Women's winner: Karine Ruby, France 1,000

Snooker

World Snooker Championship: Ronnie O'Sullivan beats Graeme Dott 18-8
World rankings: Ronnie O'Sullivan becomes world number one for 2004/05

October 16: In a qualifying match for the UK Championship, Jamie Burnett makes a break of 148 against Leo Fernandez and becomes the first player to achieve a break higher than the nominal maximum of 147 in a professional match.

Speed skating

Long track speed skating

January 2 - Winners at the 2003 Canada Post All Round Canadian Championships at Calgary, Alberta:
- Men's 500 m: Mike Ireland, Winnipeg, Manitoba 34.58 seconds
- Men's 1000 m: Jeremy Wotherspoon, Red Deer, Alberta 1:08.90
- Women's 500 m: Krisy Myers, Lloydminster, Saskatchewan 39.43
- Women's 1000 m: Kristy Myers 1:18.16
January 3
- Men's 500 m: Casey Fitzrandolph, Madison, Wisconsin 35.27 seconds
- Men's 1500 m: Jay Morrison, Fort St. John, British Columbia 1:46.96
- Women's 500 m: Kerry Simpson, Melville, Saskatchewan 39.67
- Women's 1500 m: Kristina Groves, Ottawa 1:59.25

January 17 - Winners at the World sprint speedskating championships at Nagano, Japan:
- Men's 500 m: Jeremy Wotherspoon, Canada 35.25
- Women's 500 m: Sayuri Osuga, Japan 38.79

February 7 - 9 - Winners at the 2004 World Allround Speed Skating Championships at Hamar, Norway:
- Men's 500 m: Yevgeny Lalenkov, Russia 35.780
- Men's 5000 m: Carl Verheijen, Netherlands 6:20.61
- Ladies' 500 m: Jennifer Rodriguez, United States 38.740
- Ladies' 3000 m Renate Groenewold, Netherlands 4:04.58
- Men's 1500 m Shani Davis, United States 1:46.02
- Men's 10,000 m Carl Verheijen, Netherlands 13:17.86
- Ladies' 1500 m Jennifer Rodriguez, United States, 1:57.33
- Ladies' 5000 m Gretha Smit, Netherlands 7:02.89
- Men's all-around champion: Chad Hedrick, United States 150.478
- Ladies' all-around champion: Renate Groenewold, Netherlands 162.573

Short track speed skating

January 10- World junior short-track speed skating championships at Beijing
- Men's 500 m winner: Ho-Suk Lee, South Korea 42.542 seconds
- Women's 500 m winner: Anouk Leblanc-Boucher, Canada 45.689 seconds
January 11-
- Men's 1000 m winner: Ki-Deok Kwon, South Korea 1:28.682
- Women's 1000 m winner: Yun-Mi Kang, South Korea 1:36.040
January 17- European short-track speedskating championship at Zoetermeer, Netherlands:
- Women's 500 m: Evgenia Radanova, Bulgaria 44.882
- Men's 500 m: Nicola Franceschina, Italy 42. 845

Swimming

January 13- World Cup sort-course swimming competition at Stockholm, Sweden winners:
- Men's 50 m butterfly: Mike Mintenko, Canada 23.75
- Men's 100 m freestyle: Jason Lezak, United States 47.24
- Men's 100 m IM: Kosuke Kitajima, Japan 53.71
- Men's 400 m freestyle: Yuri Prilokov, Russia 3:41.10
- Men's 400 m IM: Brian Johns, Canada 4:09.92
- Men's 50 m breaststroke: Ed Moses, United States 27.10
- Men's 200 m breaststroke: Ed Moses, United States 2:04.54
- Men's 200 m butterfly: Takeshi Matsuda, Japan 1:52.67
- Women's 50 m backstroke: Chang Gao, China 27.61
January 14-
- Men's 200 m backstroke: Evgeny Aleshin, Russia 1:53.21
- Men's 100 m butterfly: Andriy Serdinov, Ukraine 51.66
- Men's 200 m freestyle: Ryk Neethling, South Africa 1:23.85
- Men's 1,500 m freestyle: Yuri Prilukov, Russia 14:46.59
- Men's 200 m IM: Kosuke Kitajima, Japan 1:56.68

May 5 - May 16 - European LC Championships in Madrid. Winners are:
- Men's 50 m butterfly stroke: Sergiy Breus, Ukraine 24.02
- Men's 50 m backstroke: Stev Theloke, Germany 25.61
- Men's 50 m breaststroke: Oleg Lisogor, Ukraine 27.55
- Men's 100 m backstroke: Laszlo Cseh, Hungary 55.26
- Men's 100 m breaststroke: Oleg Lisogor, Ukraine 1:01.23
- Men's 100 m freestyle: Filippo Magnini, Italy 48.87
- Men's 100 m butterfly stroke: Andriy Serdinov, Ukraine 52.31
- Men's 200 m freestyle: Pieter van den Hoogenband, Netherlands 1:47.05
- Men's 200 m backstroke: Paolo Bossini, Italy 2:11.73
- Men's 200 m breaststroke: Markus Rogan, Austria 2:57.58
- Men's 200 m butterfly stroke: Denys Sylant'yev, Ukraine 1:56.71
- Men's 200 m IM: Markus Rogan, Austria 1:59.79
- Men's 400 m freestyle: Emiliano Brembilla, Italy 3:49.14
- Men's 1500 m freestyle: Yuri Prilukov, Russia 15:04.35
- Men's 4 x 100 m freestyle relay: Italy 3:15.66
- Men's 4 x 200 m freestyle relay: Italy 7:11.93
- Women's 50 m butterfly stroke: Natalia Sutiagina, Russia 27.04
- Women's 50 m breaststroke: Maria Östling, Sweden 31.68
- Women's 100 m butterfly stroke: Martina Moravcová, Slovakia 58.05
- Women's 100 m freestyle: Malia Metella, France 54.46
- Women's 100 m backstroke: Laure Manaudou, France 1:00.93
- Women's 100 m breastroke: Svetlana Bondarenko, Ukraine 1:09.23
- Women's 200 m backstroke: Stanislava Komarova, Russia 2:10.97
- Women's 200 m freestyle: Camelia Potec, Romania 1:58.20
- Women's 200 m breaststroke: Mirna Jukic, Austria 2:27.25
- Women's 200 m IM: Yana Klochkova, Ukraine 2:12.56
- Women's 400 m IM: Yana Klochkova, Ukraine 4:38.52
- Women's 800 m freestyle: Erika Villaecija, Spain 8:31.26
- Women's 4 x 100 m freestyle relay: France 3:40.67
- Women's 4 x 200 m freestyle relay: Spain 8:03.41

August 14 - August ? - Swimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. Winners are:
- Men's 400 m freestyle: Ian Thorpe, Australia
- Men's 400 m IM: Michael Phelps, United States
- Women's 400 m IM: Yana Klochkova, Ukraine
- Women's 4 x 100 m freestyle relay: Australia

Eighth European SC Championships, held in Vienna, Austria (December 9 – December 12)

Tennis

Australian Open
- Men's Final: Roger Federer defeats Marat Safin, 7-6(7-3) 6-4 6-2
- Women's Final: Justine Henin-Hardenne defeats Kim Clijsters, 6-3 4-6 6-3

French Open
- Men's Final: Gastón Gaudio defeats Guillermo Coria 0-6 3-6 6-4 6-1 8-6
- Women's Final: Anastasia Myskina defeats Elena Dementieva 6-1 6-2

Wimbledon Championships
- Men's Final: Roger Federer defeats Andy Roddick, 4-6 7-5 7-6(7-3) 6-3
- Ladies' Final: Maria Sharapova defeats Serena Williams, 6-1 6-4

US Open
- Men's Final: Roger Federer defeats Lleyton Hewitt 6-0 7-6 (7-3) 6-0
- Women's Final: Svetlana Kuznetsova defeats Elena Dementieva 6-3 7-5

See also 2004 in tennis

Floorball (Unihockey)

May 16 to May 23 - The Men's World Unihockey Championship in Switzerland were won by Sweden ^*.

General sporting events

2004 Summer Olympics held from August 13 to 29 in Athens, Greece

2004 Summer Paralympics held from September 17 to 28 in Athens, Greece

Tenth Pan Arab Games held in Algiers, Algeria

Births

Deaths

January-February

January 2 — Paul Hopkins (99), reported to be the oldest living former Major League Baseball player
January 4 — James Counsilman, American swimming coach (b. 1920)
January 5 - TG Jones, Footballer (Soccer) Wales and Everton
January 5 - Tug McGraw (59), former MLB relief pitcher with the New York Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies who played for two World Champions in 1969 with the Mets and in 1980 with the Phillies and coined the phrase "You Gotta Believe!".
January 14 — Mike Goliat (78), member of the famous Phillies' "Whiz Kids" team that won the 1950 NL pennant
January 17 — Harry "The Cat" Brecheen (89), former MLB pitcher
January 19 — David Hookes - Australian cricketer
January 25 — Fanny Blankers-Koen (85), legendary Dutch athlete
January 25 — Miklos Feher, Hungarian footballer (soccer)
February 1 — Ally McLeod, footballer (soccer) and former Scottish national team manager
February 14 — Marco Pantani (34), Italian cyclist, winner of 1998 Tour de France
February 17 — Shirley Strickland de la Hunty - Australian Athlete
February 21 — John Charles - Welsh Footballer (soccer) for Leeds, Juventus, Roma, Cardiff and Wales
February 22 — Andy Seminick, 83, former MLB catcher who played for the 1950 Phillies' "Whiz Kids" team

March-April

March 3 — Chris Timms, 56, New Zealand yachtsman
March 3 — Luis Villalta, 34, Peruvian boxer
March 18 — Gene Bearden, 83, Major League Baseball pitcher
March 22 — Peter Jackson, England and Lions winger
April 4 — George Bamberger, 80, Major League Baseball pitcher and manager
April 9 — Julius Sang, Kenyan runner (b. 1948)
April 10 — Lou Berberet, 74, Major League Baseball catcher
April 12 — Frankie Narvaez, 65, Puerto Rican boxer
April 20 — Ronnie Simpson, Scottish football (soccer) goalkeeper
April 22 — Pat Tillman, 27, American football player who left the NFL to enlist in the United States Army; killed in action in Afghanistan
April 23 — Ross Rutledge, 41, Canadian field hockey player (b. 1962)

May-June

May 2 — Moe Burtschy, 82, former MLB pitcher for the Philadelphia & Kansas City Athletics
May 3 — Darrell Johnson, 75, former MLB catcher who was manager for the Boston Red Sox in the 1975 World Series
May 17 Buster Narum, 63, former MLB pitcher for the Orioles and Senators
June 4 Wilmer Fields, 81, former Negro League Baseball All-Star
June 8 — Mack Jones, 65, former MLB outfielder, who played for the Milwaukee & Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds and Montreal Expos

July-August

July 5 — Rodger Ward, 83, two-time Indianapolis 500 winner

July 9 — Tony Lupien, 87, former MLB first baseman, who also was baseball and basketball coach for Dartmouth College

July 26 — Rubén Gómez, 77, Puerto Rico, former MLB right-handed pitcher who played for the Giants, Phillies, Indians and Twins. Gómez won baseball's first regular season game on the West Coast. He started the first game in San Francisco history, beating Don Drysdale and the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers in an 8-0 shutout on April 15, 1958. The two teams moved from New York after the 1957 season

August 23 — Hank Borowy, 88, former MLB pitcher, who played for the Yankees, Cubs, Phillies, Pirates and Tigers

August 27 — Willie Crawford, 57, former MLB outfielder who played with the Dodgers between the '60s and '70s.

September-October

September 4 — Caroline Pratt, 42, equestrian, died in an accident at the Burghley Horse Trials
September 4 — Bob Boyd, 84, former MLB first baseman; the first black player to sign with the White Sox, and the first Oriole regular to hit over .300 in the 20th century
September 19 — Line Oestvold, 26, Norwegian snowboarder, after a crash in training in Chile.
September 20 — Brian Clough, 69, English footballer and manager, won successive European Cups in 1979 and 1980 as manager of Nottingham Forest F.C.
September 29 - David Jackson, 49, New Zealand boxer
October 2 — Bolat Kesikhbaev, vice president of Kazakh Boxing Federation, heart attack
October 3 — John Cerutti, 44, baseball broadcaster
October 10 — Ken Caminiti, 41, baseball player; National League Most Valuable Player in 1996.
October 11 — Keith Miller, 84, Australian rules footballer, cricketer, fighter pilot and journalist
October 17 — Ray Boone, 81, Major League Baseball player; father of Bob Boone, grandfather of Aaron and Bret Boone
October 23 — Bill Nicholson, 85, British football player, manager, coach, scout for Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
October 24 — Ricky Hendrick, 24, NASCAR driver, in a plane crash with nine other people, including the two pilots and members of his father Rick Hendrick's family in Martinsville, Virginia
October 26 — Beto Avila, 80, Mexican Major League Baseball second baseman
October 27 — Serginho, 30, Brazilian footballer, a heart attack during a Campeonato Brasileiro match
October 28 — Jimmy McLarnin, 96, British boxer
October 29 — Jacinto João, 60, Angola-born Portuguese football (soccer) player

November-December

November 2 — Gerrie Knetemann, 53, Dutch cyclist, heart attack
November 3 — Sergei Zholtok, 32, Latvian ice hockey player, cardiac arrythmia suffered during a match in Belarus
November 8 — Eddie Charlton, 75, Australian snooker player, surgery complications
November 8 — Lennox Miller, 58, Jamaican sprinter
November 9 — Emlyn Hughes, 57, Liverpool F.C. and England football player, brain tumor
December 16 — Bobby Mattick, 89, manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, stroke
November 17 — Mikael Ljungberg, 34, Swedish wrestler (b. 1970)
November 27 — Gunder Hägg, 85, Swedish runner (b. 1918)
December 24 — Johnny Oates, 58, manager of the Texas Rangers, brain tumor
December 26 — Reggie White, 43, member of the Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers and Carolina Panthers