1969 FA Cup Final, Build-up
Manchester City manager Joe Mercer named his team for the final several days in advance. Glyn Pardoe missed training on Monday 21st with a leg injury, but after the fitness of Pardoe, Tony Coleman and Alan Oakes was tested in a practice match, all three were passed fit. Leicester City named a 14-man squad before travelling to a training camp in Bisham on the Tuesday. Manchester City travelled south on the Thursday, staying in Weybridge. Leicester had fitness doubts over Dave Gibson, Len Glover and John Sjoberg, but initially expected all three to be available for the final. However, in a practice match against Brentford, Sjoberg had to leave the field with a groin injury. His place in the team was taken by Alan Woollett.


1969 FA Cup Final, Build-up
Each club received 16,000 tickets for the final from the Football Association. The match was televised live by the BBC and ITV. Both broadcasters devoted several hours to match build-up, incorporating FA Cup-themed versions of other programmes, such as Cup Final It's a Knockout.


1969 FA Cup Final, Build-up
As the previous season's league champions, Manchester City were strong favourites, particularly as Leicester were embroiled in a struggle to avoid relegation from the First Division. The Times correspondent anticipated that the condition of the pitch would influence the match, stating that "if — as it is said — it is in a good, lush state Manchester will be happy. If, on the other hand, it proves to be heavy, then it could suit Leicester the better." On the day before the game Joe Mercer criticised the pitch, likening it to a cabbage patch.


1969 FA Cup Final, Match
At 21, Leicester's David Nish became the youngest ever captain of a cup finalist. His opposite number Tony Book became the third oldest at 35. Book had missed a large part of season through injury, but upon returning his impact was so great that he shared the award for the 1969 FWA Footballer of the Year.


1969 FA Cup Final, Match
As the teams prepared to leave their dressing rooms, Manchester City deliberately delayed their exit by a short period to play on any nerves the Leicester City players may have had. Manchester City coach Malcolm Allison was not permitted to take his place on the bench, as he was serving a touchline ban. Instead, he had to sit in the stand behind the dugout. Before kick-off, the players were introduced to the guest of honour, Princess Anne.


1969 FA Cup Final, Match
Fears that the contest would be a mismatch proved to be unfounded, with Leicester playing in a more attacking manner than anticipated. The Observer's Hugh McIvanney wrote: "Suggestions that Leicester would attempt to minimise the discrepancy in talents by a concentration on defensive spoiling were exposed as unjust…offering the deceptively languid dribbles of Clarke, the thoughtful passes of Roberts and Gibson and the thrustful running of Lochhead as proof that the skills were not all on one side." Neil Young and Tony Coleman both had early scoring chances for Manchester City, but missed the target.


1969 FA Cup Final, Match
For Leicester City, a dribbling run by Clarke ended in a shot that was saved by Dowd, and a mishit shot by Len Glover was cleared off the goal-line by a defender. Manchester City scored midway through the first half. Mike Summerbee crossed the ball from wide on the right, and Young hit a left footed shot high into Peter Shilton's net. Few further chances occurred in the first half.


1969 FA Cup Final, Match
Just after half-time, Leicester City had their strongest scoring chance, when Andy Lochhead received a headed knockdown from Allan Clarke, but Lochhead's shot went high above the goal. A dominant period by Manchester City then followed, which included a chance for Colin Bell from a free-kick. Len Glover was forced to move into defence with his team under pressure, but was injured shortly afterward and had to be substituted. Defender Malcolm Manley came on in his place.


1969 FA Cup Final, Match
A poll of journalists named Allan Clarke as man of the match.


1969 FA Cup Final, Post-match
The Manchester City team returned to Manchester the following evening. They travelled by train to Wilmslow, from where they undertook a 13-mile parade in an open-topped bus. 25,000 people lined the route, with a further 3,000 people in Albert Square, where the parade finished. Three days later, the team paraded the cup in front of their supporters before their match against West Ham United at Maine Road.


1969 FA Cup Final, Post-match
The good conduct of the supporters of both teams was praised in Parliament by MPs Barnett Janner andTom Boardman.


1969 FA Cup Final, Post-match
Manchester City's cup was their fourth. In winning the trophy, Joe Mercer became the first person to win the league championship and FA Cup as both a captain and a manager. By winning the competition, Manchester City earned the right to compete in the 1969–70 European Cup Winners' Cup. City went on to win the Cup Winners' Cup, beating Górnik Zabrze 2–1 in the final. Leicester City continued to struggle in their remaining league matches and were relegated to the Second Division. Leicester became only the second club to reach a cup final and suffer relegation in the same season. By coincidence, the other club to have done so was Manchester City, who were subject to the same fate in 1926.


1969 FAMAS Awards
The 17th Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences Awards Night was held on April 27, 1969, for the Outstanding Achievements for the year 1968.


1969 FAMAS Awards
Igorota, made by Nepomuceno Productions won eight Famas Awards including the FAMAS Award for Best Picture and best actress for Charito Solis.


1969 FIBA Intercontinental Cup
The 1969 FIBA Intercontinental Cup was the 4th edition of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup for men's basketball clubs. It took place at Macon, Georgia, United States. From the FIBA European Champions Cup participated Real Madrid and Spartak ZJŠ Brno, and from the South American Club Championship participated Sírio. Macon Movers took part from the NCAA, and from the NABL participated the Akron Goodyear Wingfoots.


1969 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Cup
The 1969 FIVB Men's World Cup was held from 13 to 20 September 1969 in East Germany.


1969 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Cup, Results, Final round
The results and the points of the matches between the same teams that were already played during the first round are taken into account for the final round.


1969 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Cup, Final standing
1 East Germany Junior men's national team replaced North Korea.


1969 Federation Cup (tennis)
The 1969 Federation Cup was the seventh edition of what is now known as the Fed Cup. 20 nations participated in the tournament, which was held at the Athens Tennis Club in Athens, Greece from 19–25 May. United States defeated Australia in the final, in what was the fourth final featuring both teams.


1969 Federation Cup (tennis), Draw
All ties were played at the Athens Tennis Club in Athens, Greece on clay courts.


1969 Five Nations Championship
The 1969 Five Nations Championship was the fortieth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the seventy-fifth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 11 January and 12 April. It was contested by England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.


1969 Five Nations Championship
Ireland missed out on a second Grand Slam after losing to Wales at Cardiff Arms Park.


1969 Florida A&M Rattlers football team
The 1969 Florida A&M Rattlers football team was an American football team that represented Florida A&M University as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) during the 1969 NCAA College  Division football season. In their 25th and final season under head coach Jake Gaither, the Rattlers compiled an 8–1 record, were ranked No. 16 in the final 1969 AP small college poll, and defeated Grambling in the Orange Blossom Classic.


1969 Florida Gators football team
The 1969 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida during the 1969 NCAA University Division football season. The season was the tenth, last, and arguably most successful season for Ray Graves as the head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Graves' 1969 Florida Gators finished their regular season with an overall record of 8–1–1 and an SEC record of 3–1–1, placing fourth among the ten SEC teams. Florida concluded the year with a Gator Bowl victory over SEC-champion Tennessee. Afterwards, Graves resigned from the head coaching position to become the university's athletic director, and was replaced by Tennessee head coach Doug Dickey.


1969 Florida Gators football team
Graves' final Gators squad was led by a surprising group of second-year offensive players known as the "Super Sophs", that included quarterback John Reaves, wide receiver Carlos Alvarez and tailback Tommy Durrance.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Houston
In the opening game against the seventh-ranked Houston Cougars, the unranked Gators debuted a new passing offense which set the tone of success for the rest of the season  and upset the Cougars 59–34. Carlos Alvarez  had 6 catches and 182 yards receiving.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Mississippi State
In the second week of play, the Gators beat Mississippi State. 47–25. Alvarez  had 12 catches and 180 yards receiving.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Florida State
The Gators won the matchup over Florida State 21–6 on the back of a defensive surge that was unparalleled in Gator history. The Gators defense, led by junior defensive lineman Jack Youngblood,  and sophomore defensive lineman Robert Harrell, sacked FSU quarterback Bill Cappleman eleven times for 91 yards leaving FSU with a total of negative 18 yards rushing in the game. Youngblood had been shifted to defensive end, with Harrell at tackle. Harrell earned National Defensive Lineman of The Week honors.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Florida State
In addition to the pass rush, the FSU offense fumbled the ball eight times, losing five. Two other Gator Sophomores starred in the game as well, All-American wide out Carlos Alvarez and quarterback John Reaves. Alvarez had seven catches for 134 yards.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Tulane
On "Super Saturday" in Tampa, the Gators came from behind and went for two to beat winless Tulane by an 18–17 score. Alvarez had 11 catches for 146 yards. "It was a damn poor victory, but it tasted a lost better than a defeat would have" wrote Jack Hairston.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, North Carolina
The Gators defeated the North Carolina Tar Heels 52–2 and Alvarez caught 4 passes for 122 yards.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Vanderbilt
Florida won over the Vanderbilt Commodores 41–20. Reaves threw 5 touchdowns and Alvarez  had 11 catches for 112 yards.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Auburn; Georgia
A Southeastern Conference (SEC) loss to the Auburn Tigers and a tie with the rival Georgia Bulldogs cost the Gators a share of their elusive first SEC football championship.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Kentucky
In a 31–6 victory over the Kentucky Wildcats 31–6. Alvarez had 10 catches for 105 receiving yards.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Season summary, Miami
Florida beat the Miami Hurricanes 35–16 as Carlos Alvarez had a then-record 237 receiving yards on 15 receptions.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Postseason, Tennessee
In a strange twist, the Gators were invited to play coach Doug Dickey's SEC champion Tennessee Volunteers in the December 1969 Gator Bowl. In a game dominated by a Gators defense led by linebacker Mike Kelley (the game's MVP), defensive back Steve Tannen and defensive end Jack Youngblood, the Gators upset the Volunteers 14–13 to cap their 9–1–1 season—the Gators' best ever single-season record to that time. After the Gator Bowl, Ray Graves resigned as the head coach of the Gators football team, but continued as the athletic director of the Florida Gators sports program until 1979.


1969 Florida Gators football team, Postseason, Tennessee
During the 1960s, Graves compiled an overall record of 70–31–4 (.686) during the decade, making Graves the winningest coach in the history of the Gators football program until that time.


1969 Florida State Seminoles football team
The 1969 Florida State Seminoles football team represented Florida State University in the 1969 NCAA University Division football season. This was Bill Peterson's tenth year as head coach, and he led the team to an 6–3–1 record.


1969 Football League Cup Final
The 1969 Football League Cup Final took place on 15 March 1969 at Wembley Stadium. It was the ninth final and the third to be played at Wembley. It was contested between Arsenal and Swindon Town. The Football League Cup winners were given a place in the Fairs Cup, but only if they were in Division One. In Division Three at the time, Swindon did not qualify.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Pre-match
First Division Arsenal had lost the previous season to Leeds United in the 1968 League Cup Final, and were aiming to do better in their second successive appearance. Swindon Town on the other hand were considered the underdogs, being two divisions below Arsenal in the Third Division, and were appearing in their first League Cup Final and indeed their first match at Wembley.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Pre-match
However, with eight Arsenal players suffering from flu (which had led to their match the previous weekend being postponed) and the pitch deteriorating badly due to heavy rain circumstances did not favour Arsenal's short-ball game.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Pre-match
As both sides' colours clashed, League Cup rules stated that both would have to play in their alternative kits. Arsenal wore their yellow and dark blue strip, and Swindon Town opted to wear an all-white kit instead of their usual alternative of all-blue.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Match
Arsenal began the game by putting Swindon's defence under heavy pressure early on, resulting in a series of early corners as Arsenal attempted to finish the game quickly. Swindon's attacking play was kept to a minimum by Arsenal's more experienced and better conditioned defence and the game developed into a one-way affair.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Match
However, the first goal came from Swindon in the 35th minute, against the run of play, scored by Roger Smart. A mix-up between defender Ian Ure and goalkeeper Bob Wilson over a backpass led to confusion in the Arsenal defence, and allowed Smart to capitalise and score. Swindon maintained their 1–0 lead until half-time.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Match
The second half was again one-sided, with Swindon's tactics being those of all-out defence to protect their lead. Swindon goalkeeper Peter Downsborough prevented numerous Arsenal players from scoring, including saving efforts that looked unstoppable from Jon Sammels and Bob McNab.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Match
Until the 86th minute, it seemed that a great football upset was sure to occur; however Swindon goalkeeper Downsborough tried to claim a ball and fumbled, allowing Bobby Gould to equalise with a header and take the game into extra time.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Match
Swindon dominated extra time, with the heavy pitch and illnesses tiring the opposition. A header from Smart rebounded off the post after beating the Arsenal goalkeeper. From the resulting corner, Don Rogers became a Swindon hero just before the first period of extra time was over; Arsenal failed to clear the corner and in the resulting goalmouth melée Rogers coolly controlled the loose ball and fired it from close range into the net.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Match
Arsenal responded by changing to all-out attack during the second period. However, Ure lost the ball in the Swindon half to Smart, and Arsenal were caught on the counter-attack by a long ball from Smart to Rogers, who receiving the ball midway between the halfway line and Arsenal's penalty area, ran unopposed all the way, rounded Wilson and sealed victory for Swindon in the 109th minute.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Arsenal initially claimed that the heavy pitch and illnesses were a major contributing factor to the shock loss.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
However, in recent years some players have identified the game as the impetus for Arsenal's later successes in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup of 1970, their first European competition cup, and their first League and FA Cup double in 1971.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
National newspapers reported the story the following day under headlines such as "The shame of Arsenal", for example:


1969 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Swindon Town returned to Wiltshire to a heroes' welcome. On Sunday 16 March 1969, a crowd of 8,000 gathered in Regent's Circus, as the players emerged onto the balcony of the Town Hall. The Mayor, Alf Bown, raised a glass to the club and called for "promotion" – which Swindon achieved after failing to lose any of their nine remaining matches. A draw at Rotherham United saw the Town move up into the Second Division.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Although League Cup winners, Swindon were ineligible for a place in the Fairs Cup (later the UEFA Cup) of 1969–70. At the time the competition was only open to teams from Division One.


1969 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
The Anglo-Italian and Anglo Italian League Cups were created in lieu of a proper European competition for the club to compete in. Swindon went on to win the Anglo-Italian League Cup in 1969 and the Anglo-Italian Cup in 1970.


1969 Formula One season
The 1969 Formula One season was the 23rd season of the FIA's Formula One motor racing. It featured the 20th World Championship of Drivers and the 12th International Cup for F1 Manufacturers, which commenced on 1 March 1969 and ended on 19 October after eleven races. The season also included four non-championship races.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
Matra, which had entered Formula One the previous year, withdrew their works team from the 1969 championship and focused on their partnership with Ken Tyrrell. Stewart won the 1969 title easily with the new Matra MS80, which corrected most of the weaknesses of the MS10. Stewart's title was the first won by a French chassis, and the only one won by a chassis built in France. It would also be the only time a constructor won in Formula One without fielding a works team.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
Jacky Ickx had a strong second half to the season for Brabham, winning in Germany and Canada, after Jack Brabham was sidelined by a testing accident. Ickx finished second in the Drivers' Championship, with 37 points to Jackie Stewart's 63.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
The season was the second to see the use of add-on aerodynamic devices, which were experimented with by some teams in the 1968 season. After several incidents in which wings, struts, or the suspension (to which they were attached) collapsed, wings were banned from Monaco 1969. They were reintroduced later in the season but were to be restricted in size and height, and attached directly to the chassis in a fixed position.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
1969 also saw a brief resurgence of interest in four wheel drive following a number of wet races the previous year. Four such cars were entered for the British Grand Prix, and Johnny Servoz-Gavin became the one and only driver to score a point with a 4WD, finishing sixth with the Matra MS84 at the Canadian Grand Prix. At the same race, Al Pease made history by being the only driver disqualified from a World Championship event for being too slow.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
Wide tyres and downforce quickly proved to be superior means of increasing grip, and the technology was largely abandoned, although Lotus continued to experiment with the idea for a few more years. Bruce McLaren described the handling of his M9 as being like trying to sign an autograph while someone was jogging his elbow; Cosworth discovered that their car handled better with more power directed to the rear wheels.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
1969 was the first year in which genuine safety measures were implemented at circuits. The cars were going far faster over time, particularly with the increased engine capacity rules for 1966 onwards from 1.5 litres uncompressed to 3 litres uncompressed or 1.5 litres compressed, and the role that manipulated aerodynamics began to play in the cars' performance. The Montjuic circuit in Barcelona was a first in Grand Prix racing- the circuit was completely Armco-lined.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
Although safety measures in 1969 were still nearly non-existent compared to today's modern safety standards, these measures were a new step forward to protect drivers from further harm. About half the circuits in Formula One at this time had some safety standards, such as Silverstone, Magdalena Mixhuca in Mexico City and (less so) Monaco; although other circuits were nearly unchanged from previous years, such as the Nürburgring in Germany and the Clermont-Ferrand circuit in France; both were twisty mountain road circuits with all kinds of unprotected drop offs and solid obstacles on the sides of both circuits.


1969 Formula One season, Championship summary
Another example was the feared Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium, an extremely fast public road circuit which was located in a similar area and had similar dangers to the Nürburgring and Clermont-Ferrand. The Belgian Grand Prix, originally to be held on 8 June between the Monaco and Dutch Grands Prix, was boycotted by many of the drivers because of the extreme danger of the track after an overall inspection of Spa by Jackie Stewart, who was responsible for most of the activities in Formula One to try to make it safer. He demanded changes to the circuit that the track owners did not want to pay for, so the race was boycotted and eventually cancelled. Spa was included in 1970 after Armco was added to some parts of the track.


1969 Formula One season, Calendar, Calendar changes
The South African Grand Prix was moved from It's January date in 1968 to early March for 1969.


1969 Formula One season, Calendar, Calendar changes
The Spanish Grand Prix was moved from Jarama to Montjuïc, in keeping with the event-sharing arrangement between the two circuits.


1969 Formula One season, Calendar, Calendar changes
The French Grand Prix was moved from Rouen-Les-Essarts to Charade due to safety concerns at Rouen after Jo Schlesser was killed in the 1968 French Grand Prix.


1969 Formula One season, Calendar, Calendar changes
The British Grand Prix was moved from Brands Hatch to Silverstone, in keeping with the event-sharing arrangement between the two circuits.


1969 Formula One season, Calendar, Calendar changes
The Canadian Grand Prix was moved from Mont-Tremblant to Mosport Park, in keeping with the event-sharing arrangement between the two circuits.


1969 Formula One season, Calendar, Calendar changes
The Mexican Grand Prix was moved back to it's October schedule for 1969, the 1968 race was held in November two weeks later than usual to avoid a clash with the 1968 Summer Olympics which was held in October at Mexico City.


1969 Formula One season, Calendar, Calendar changes
The Belgian Grand Prix was originally to be held on 8 June, but was cancelled after the drivers boycotted the Grand Prix because of the extreme dangers of the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps after an overall inspection of Spa was done by Jackie Stewart, who was responsible for most of the activities in Formula One to try to make it safer. He demanded changes to the circuit that the track owners didn't want to pay for.


1969 Formula One season, Entries
The following teams and drivers competed in the 1969 FIA World Championship.


1969 Formula One season, Results and standings, World Drivers' Championship standings
Points were awarded on a 9–6–4–3–2–1 basis for the top six finishers at each Grand Prix. However only the best five results from the first six races and the best four results from the last five races counted towards the World Championship.


1969 Formula One season, Results and standings, World Drivers' Championship standings
Formula 2 cars occupied the positions between fifth and tenth at the German GP, but the drivers who drove these cars did not earn points for the championship. The fifth and sixth points went to the eleventh and twelfth in the race, Siffert and Beltoise.


1969 Formula One season, Results and standings, International Cup for F1 Manufacturers standings
Points were awarded on a 9–6–4–3–2–1 basis to the first six finishers at each round, however only the best placed car from each manufacturer was eligible to score points. The best five results from the first six rounds and the best four results from the last five rounds were retained.


1969 Formula One season, Non-championship races
Other Formula One races were held in 1969, which did not count towards the World Championship. The Madrid Grand Prix and Gold Cup were held concurrently with Formula 5000 cars.


1969 French Grand Prix
The 1969 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at the Charade Circuit on 6 July 1969. It was race 5 of 11 in both the 1969 World Championship of Drivers and the 1969 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. There were only thirteen entries for this Grand Prix. The 38-lap race was won by Matra driver Jackie Stewart after he started from pole position. His teammate Jean-Pierre Beltoise finished second and Brabham driver Jacky Ickx came in third.


1969 French Open
The 1969 French Open was a tennis tournament that was held at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris in France from May 26 through June 8, 1969. It was the 73rd edition of the French Open, the 39th to be open to foreign competitors, and the second Grand Slam of the year. Rod Laver won his second Grand Slam title of the year.


1969 French Open, Finals, Men's doubles
John Newcombe /  Tony Roche defeated  Roy Emerson /  Rod Laver, 4–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–4, 6–4


1969 French Open, Finals, Women's doubles
Françoise Dürr /  Ann Haydon-Jones defeated  Margaret Court /  Nancy Richey, 6–0, 4–6, 7–5


1969 French Open, Finals, Mixed doubles
Margaret Court /  Marty Riessen defeated  Françoise Dürr /  Jean-Claude Barclay, 6–3, 6–2


1969 French Open – Men's Doubles
Ken Rosewall and Fred Stolle were the defending champions but lost in the quarterfinals to Ilie Năstase and Ion Ţiriac.


1969 French Open – Men's Doubles
John Newcombe and Tony Roche won in the final 4–6, 6–1, 3–6, 6–4, 6–4 against Roy Emerson and Rod Laver.


1969 French Open – Men's Singles
First-seeded Rod Laver defeated defending champion Ken Rosewall 6–4, 6–3, 6–4 in the final to win the Men's Singles tennis title at the 1969 French Open.


1969 French Open – Men's Singles, Seeds
The seeded players are listed below. Rod Laver is the champion; others show the round in which they were eliminated.


1969 French Open – Men's Singles Qualifying
Players who neither had high enough rankings nor received wild cards to enter the main draw of the annual French Open Tennis Championships participated in a qualifying tournament held in the week before the event.


1969 French Open – Mixed Doubles
Jean-Claude Barclay and Françoise Dürr were the defending champions but lost in the final 6–3, 6–2 against Marty Riessen and Margaret Court.


1969 French Open – Women's Doubles
The Women's Doubles tournament at the 1969 French Open was held from 26 May to 8 June 1969 on the outdoor clay courts at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France. The third-seeded team of Françoise Dürr and Ann Jones won the title, defeating the first-seeded pair of Margaret Court and Nancy Richey in the final in three sets.


1969 French Open – Women's Singles
Margaret Court defeated Ann Jones in the final, 6–1, 4–6, 6–3 to win the Women's Singles tennis title at the 1969 French Open. This was Court's third French Open title, her second Grand Slam title of the year and her fifteenth Grand Slam overall. Nancy Richey was the defending champion, but lost in the semifinals to Court.


1969 French Open – Women's Singles, Seeds
The seeded players are listed below. Margaret Court is the champion; others show the round in which they were eliminated.


1969 French Open – Women's Singles Qualifying
Players who neither had high enough rankings nor received wild cards to enter the main draw of the annual French Open Tennis Championships participated in a qualifying tournament held in the week before the event.


1969 French constitutional referendum
A constitutional referendum was held in France on 27 April 1969. The reforms would have led to government decentralization and changes to the Senate. It was rejected by 52.4% of voters, and failure of the amendments led to President Charles de Gaulle's resignation.


1969 French constitutional referendum, Proposals, Government decentralization
The first part of the project aimed to classify the existence of Regions in the constitution as Territorial Collectivities. That would affect the regional circonscriptions created in 1960, and Corsica.


1969 French constitutional referendum, Proposals, Government decentralization
The Region's jurisdiction would be enlarged, primarily with taking control of public utilities, housing and urbanization. In order to exercise these new powers, the Region would be able to borrow money, enter into contracts, create, manage or grant public organizations and enter into agreements with other Regions.


1969 French constitutional referendum, Proposals, Government decentralization
Special arrangements would be taken for the Parisian Region, Corsica and the overseas departments.


1969 French constitutional referendum, Proposals, Senate reform
The second part of the project would combine the Senate and the Economic and Social Council into one new senate having a consultative function and no blocking power. The necessity of a second consultative house representing the territorial collectivities and economic, familial and intellectual organizations had been announced by de Gaulle in his Bayeux speech, on 16 June 1946, and mentioned again during his presidency and to Alain Peyrefitte. The main changes in the role of the senate would be the following:


1969 French constitutional referendum, Proposals, Senate reform
Senators would be elected for six years, with elections held for half the house every three years (as has been the case since 2003). They would have to be over twenty-three, rather than the then minimum age of thirty-five.


1969 French constitutional referendum, Campaign
De Gaulle announced that if the reforms were refused, he would resign. The opposition urged people to vote no, and the general was equally hindered by popular former right-wing prime minister Georges Pompidou, who would stand as a presidential candidate if de Gaulle were to leave, reducing the fear of a power vacuum felt by the right-wing Gaullist electorate. Also, former finance minister Valéry Giscard d'Estaing declared that he would not vote yes. Only the UDR campaigned for a yes.


1969 French constitutional referendum, Aftermath
Following the referendum's failure, de Gaulle resigned on 28 April 1969, at ten past midnight, and released a laconic statement from Colombey-les-Deux-Églises:


1969 French constitutional referendum, Aftermath
I cease to exercise my functions as president of the Republic. This decision will take effect today at midday.


1969 French constitutional referendum, Aftermath
Alain Poher, president of the senate, became interim president of the Republic until the next elections, when Georges Pompidou came to power.


1969 French presidential election
The 1969 French presidential election took place on 1 June and 15 June 1969. It occurred due to the resignation of President Charles de Gaulle on 28 April 1969. De Gaulle had decided to consult the voters by referendum about regionalisation and the reform of the Senate, and he had announced he would resign if it resulted in a "no" vote. On 27 April, 53.5% of the voters had voted "no".


1969 French presidential election
In the presidential election, the Gaullist Party (Union of Democrats for the Republic, UDR) was represented by former Prime Minister Georges Pompidou. He was very popular in the conservative electorate due to economic growth when he led the cabinet (from 1962 to 1968) and his role in the settlement of the May 68 crisis and winning the June 1968 legislative campaign. In his presidential campaign, he obtained the support of the Independent Republicans and their leader Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, who had voted "no" in the referendum.


1969 French presidential election
The left-wing French Communist Party (PCF) proposed to the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO, later formed the Socialist Party) to present a candidate with a common programme, but the SFIO refused. The Left was severely divided in this election. The PCF candidate was Jacques Duclos, one of the historical leaders of the party. The mayor of Marseille, Gaston Defferre, was the SFIO candidate and campaigned with Pierre Mendès France, who would have become Prime Minister had Defferre been elected to the Presidency.


1969 French presidential election
This candidacy was the first – and so far, only – dual "ticket" in a French presidential election. But Defferre's campaign was weakened by the decision of centrist interim President Alain Poher to run. As Chairman of the Senate, Poher had led the "no" campaign in the referendum. The success of the "no" campaign gave him the legitimacy to run for the Presidency and he rallied a large swathe of centre-right and centre-left voters.


1969 French presidential election
Michel Rocard and Alain Krivine stood as candidates expressing the ideas of the May 1968 movements, though the Trotskyist Krivine took a far more radical stance.


1969 French presidential election, First round
The first round of voting was held on 1 June 1969. Out of a total of 28,774,041 eligible voters, participation in the first round hovered around 78% of the electorate. Pompidou and Poher won the right to compete in the second round by claiming 43.9% and 23.4% of the vote respectively.


1969 French presidential election, Second round
The second round saw Pompidou facing Poher. None of the left-wing candidates reached the second round, despite a good campaign and the result for Duclos, who scored the best ever result for a Communist in a presidential election. The Socialists supported reluctantly the centrist Chairman of the Senate. The Communists refused to choose and used a slogan which was equivalent to the phrase "It's six of one and half a dozen of the other" (c'est bonnet blanc et blanc bonnet).


1969 French presidential election, Second round
The second round was held on 15 June 1969. About 69% of eligible voters participated. Pompidou was elected President of France with a comfortable majority of more than 58%.


1969 Fresno State Bulldogs football team
The 1969 Fresno State Bulldogs football team represented Fresno State College during the 1969 NCAA University Division football season.


1969 Fresno State Bulldogs football team
This was Fresno State's first year in the University Division and was the inaugural season for the Pacific Coast Athletic Association. The team was led by head coach Darryl Rogers, in his fourth year, and they played their home games at Ratcliffe Stadium on the campus of Fresno City College in Fresno, California.


1969 GP Ouest–France
The 1969 GP Ouest-France was the 33rd edition of the GP Ouest-France cycle race and was held on 26 August 1969. The race started and finished in Plouay. The race was won by Jean Jourden.


1969 Gator Bowl
The 1969 Gator Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Florida Gators, both representing the SEC. Florida defeated Tennessee, 14–13.


1969 Gator Bowl, Game summary
The expected high-scoring battle featuring Florida's "Super Sophs" passing attack against Tennessee's powerful ground game led by quarterback Bobby Scott never materialized, as both defenses were superb in the Gators' 14–13 win. Quarterback John Reaves connected with wide receiver Carlos Alvarez for the Gators' only offensive touchdown, and the Gator defense stopped the Volunteers at Florida's one-yard line late in the game to preserve the victory. The game's MVPs were Florida linebacker Mike Kelley, who had an interception, a fumble recovery, a blocked punt recovered for a touchdown, a sack, and 17 tackles, and fullback Curt Watson of Tennessee.


1969 Gent–Wevelgem
The 1969 Gent–Wevelgem was the 31st edition of the Gent–Wevelgem cycle race and was held on 16 April 1969. The race started in Ghent and finished in Wevelgem. The race was won by Willy Vekemans of the Goldor team.


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968)
The 1969 Georgia 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on November 17, 1968, at Middle Georgia Raceway in Byron, Georgia. It is not to be confused with another running of the 1969 Georgia 500 which actually took place in 1969.


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968)
The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968), Race report
Thirty drivers qualified for this 500-lap racing event that took three hours and eight minutes to complete. Most of the field was driving vehicles made by Ford. J.D. McDuffie ended up becoming the last-place finisher due to a problem with his engine on lap 20. Ed Negre was the lowest finishing driver to complete the race regardless of being 206 laps behind the drivers on the lead lap. Six thousand excited NASCAR fans were eager to see Richard Petty defeat David Pearson by a margin of five seconds.


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968), Race report
J.D. McDuffie's vehicle developed engine problems on lap 20. Jabe Thomas's vehicle developed similar issues on lap 26. An oil leak took Bill Champion out of the race on lap 81 while Don Tomberlin's engine stopped working normally on lap 90. The rear end of Don Tarr's vehicle became dangerously loose on lap 94. Driveshaft problems relegated Darel Dieringer to the sidelines on lap 119. E.J. Trivette managed to overheat his vehicle on lap 140. Ervin Pruitt no longer had a safe rear end for his vehicle on lap 162. Earl Brooks inflicted terminal damage on his vehicle on lap 189. G.C. Spencer lost the rear end of his vehicle on lap 210. Wayne Smith fell out with engine failure on lap 222.


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968), Race report
Bobby Allison's vehicle no longer had a rear end on lap 252; forcing his exit from the race. Engine problems forced Bobby Isaac out of the race on lap 315 while a terminal crash took LeeRoy Yarbrough out of the race on lap 316. Friday Hassler's engine problems were unfortunate enough to kick him out of the race on lap 476 with a "fortunate" sixth-place finish.


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968), Race report
From the halfway point (lap 251) to the end of the event, Petty and Pearson didn't allow the lead to escape their collective grasps. David Pearson, Bobby Isaac, and Bobby Allison all dominated the opening 100 laps of this racing event. The average racing speed was 85.121 miles per hour (136.989 km/h); which was overshadowed by David Pearson's solo qualifying speed of 95.472 miles per hour (153.647 km/h). Thankfully, this would be the final time that NASCAR followed the old tradition of starting the season in November.


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968), Race report
Notable crew chiefs for the race were Harry Hyde, Dale Inman, Mario Rossi, Dick Hutcherson, and John Hill. Individual driver earnings from this racing event ranged from the winner's share of $3,500 ($25,733 when considering inflation) to the lowest possible earnings of $150 ($1,103 when considering inflation).


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968), Race report
Organizers were authorized to hand over a grand total of $16,935 for all the qualifying drivers ($124,509 when considering inflation).


1969 Georgia 500 (November 1968), Finishing order
† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased * Driver failed to finish race


1969 Georgia 500 (November)
The 1969 Georgia 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on November 9, 1969, at Middle Georgia Raceway in Byron, Georgia. An earlier race was run on November 1968 with the same name and year number.


1969 Georgia 500 (November)
The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Race report
It took two hours and thirty-seven minutes to thoroughly complete 500 laps worth of racing.


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Race report
LeeRoy Yarbrough quit for reasons unknown after just 64 laps; causing him to become the last-place finisher. Don Tarr's vehicle would develop problems with its water pump; relegating it to the garage on lap 126. Larry Baumel became the lowest-finishing driver who did not quit the race.


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Race report
James Cox also quit the race, but only after competing in 131 laps. Don Biederman's vehicle developed issues with its clutch on lap 130 while the rear end of Dick Brooks' vehicle forced him to retire from the race on lap 210. A problematic axle would end Roy Mayne's day on the track on lap 221. Engine problems would claim Friday Hassler's vehicle on lap 236 and Johnny Halford's vehicle on lap 256.


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Race report
A problematic clutch would take Elmo Langley out of the metaphorical equation on lap 288 while engine issues forced Ed Negre to retire on lap 291. E.J. Trivette would notice the rear end of his vehicle missing on lap 314 while Pete Hazelwood was black-flagged out the race on lap 366. Neil Castles would be forced to depart from the race due to engine troubles on lap 381.


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Race report
Richard Petty had an engine problem and secure himself a sixth-place finish while Earl Brooks ended up more than 100 laps behind the lead lap drivers.


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Race report
A NASCAR-following audience of ten thousand strong supporters ended up seeing Bobby Allison besting David Pearson by a distance of five stock car lengths. While David Pearson, Bobby Isaac and Richard Petty dominated the first 100 laps, the final 100 laps were monopolized by David Pearson and Bobby Allison. Six notable crew chiefs were recorded as participating in the event; including Dick Hutcherson, Dale Inman and Harry Hyde.


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Race report
Don Biederman was the only Canadian in a field of 29 mostly American-born drivers. Bobby Isaac's pole position speed of 94.148 miles per hour (151.517 km/h) exceeded the average race speed of 81.079 miles per hour (130.484 km/h) by an incredible amount of time. Individual post-race earnings for each driver ranged from the winner's share of $3,050 ($21,264 when considering inflation) to the last-place finisher's share of $350 ($2,440 when considering inflation). The total prize purse that was offered by the organizers was $19,075 ($132,988 when considering inflation).


1969 Georgia 500 (November), Finishing order
† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased * Driver failed to finish race


1969 Georgia Bulldogs football team
The 1969 Georgia Bulldogs football team had represented the Georgia Bulldogs of the University of Georgia during the 1969 NCAA University Division football season.


1969 Georgia Bulldogs football team
Some of the more prominent players for the Bulldog were Jake Scott, Mike Cavan, Tommy Lyons, and Spike Jones.


1969 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team
The 1969 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team represented the Georgia Institute of Technology in the 1969 NCAA University Division football season. The Yellow Jackets were led by third-year head coach Bud Carson and played their home games at Grant Field  in Atlanta.


1969 German Grand Prix
The 1969 German Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Nürburgring on 3 August 1969. It was race 7 of 11 in both the 1969 World Championship of Drivers and the 1969 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. Twelve Formula Two cars were also entered into the race, though they were not eligible to score points.


1969 German Grand Prix
The 14-lap race was won by Belgian driver Jacky Ickx, driving a works Brabham-Ford. Ickx took pole position, led the final eight laps and set the fastest lap of the race. Scotland's Jackie Stewart finished second in a Matra-Ford, with New Zealand's Bruce McLaren third in a McLaren-Ford.


1969 German Grand Prix, Report
Gerhard Mitter was killed during a practice session for this race at Schwedenkreuz. He was practicing for BMW's 269 F2 project. As a suspension or steering failure was suspected, the BMW team with Hubert Hahne and Dieter Quester withdrew from the race, as did Mitter's teammate at Porsche, Hans Herrmann.


1969 German Grand Prix, Report
Mario Andretti drove the 4WD Lotus 63 for very few laps in practice. The heavy fuel load for the race made the car ground out in lap 1 after a jump at Wippermann, causing a crash that also took out Vic Elford, whose car flipped upside down and landed in the trees. Elford broke his arm in 3 places.


1969 German Grand Prix, Report
In the race, Jacky Ickx had a very poor start which dropped him down to 9th, but he eventually passed the entire field over 3 laps, and he and Jackie Stewart battled for 4 laps until Ickx passed Stewart at the first corner, the Südkehre. Stewart held on but then gearbox problems began to slow him and he dropped away, leaving Ickx in a dominant position. Piers Courage had an accident at Breidscheid when he slipped on some oil and crashed into a ditch next to the Adenauer bridge. Luckily, he was unhurt.


1969 German Grand Prix, Report
This was the last Formula One race at the Nürburgring before it was rebuilt and fitted with Armco barriers for the 1971 race.


1969 German Open Championships
The 1969 German Open Championships was a combined men's and women's tennis tournament played on outdoor red clay courts. It was the 61st edition of the tournament, the second one in the Open Era, and the first edition to offer official prize money. The event took place at the Am Rothenbaum in Hamburg, West Germany, from 5 August through 11 August 1969. First-seeded Tony Roche and Judy Tegart won the singles titles. Tegart also won the doubles (with Helga Niessen) and mixed doubles (with Marty Riessen) titles.


1969 German Open Championships, Champions, Men's doubles
Tom Okker /  Marty Riessen defeated  Jean-Claude Barclay /  Jürgen Fassbender 6–1, 6–2, 6–4


1969 German Open Championships, Champions, Women's doubles
Judy Tegart /  Helga Niessen defeated  Edda Buding /  Helga Hösl Schultze 6–1, 6–4


1969 German Open Championships, Champions, Mixed doubles
Judy Tegart /  Marty Riessen defeated  Pat Walkden /  Frew McMillan 6–4, 6–1


1969 Ghanaian parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Ghana on 29 August 1969, the first since the 1966 coup by the National Liberation Council which toppled the Nkrumah government.


1969 Ghanaian parliamentary election
Voters elected the new 140-seat Parliament. Kofi Abrefa Busia, the leader of the Progress Party (which won 105 of the 140 seats) became Prime Minister. There were no presidential elections, as the system adopted was a parliamentary republic. Instead, a ceremonial president, Edward Akufo-Addo, was elected by an electoral college.


1969 Gibraltar general election
General elections were held in Gibraltar on 30 July 1969 . The Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights remained the largest party in the House of Assembly, winning seven of the 15 seats. However, the opposition Integration with Britain Party and Isola Group held eight seats between them and were able to form a government, marking the first time since 1950 that the AACR had been out of power.


1969 Gibraltar general election, Electoral system
Until 1969 the legislature had been elected by proportional representation. However, in 1969 the voting system was changed to allow each voter to vote for up to eight candidates.


1969 Gillette Cup
The 1969 Gillette Cup was the seventh Gillette Cup, an English limited overs county cricket tournament. It was held between 10 May and 6 September 1969. The tournament was won by Yorkshire County Cricket Club who defeated Derbyshire County Cricket Club by 69 runs in the final at Lord's.


1969 Gillette Cup, Format
The seventeen first-class counties were joined by five Minor Counties: Buckinghamshire, Devon, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Wiltshire. Teams who won in the first round progressed to the second round. The winners in the second round then progressed to the quarter-final stage. Winners from the quarter-finals then progressed to the semi-finals from which the winners then went on to the final at Lord's which was held on 6 September 1969.


1969 Giro d'Italia
The 1969 Giro d'Italia was the 52nd edition of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The 3,851-kilometre (2,393 mi) race consisted of 23 stages, one of which was a split stage, starting in Garda on 16 May and finishing Milan on 8 June. There were two time trial stages and a single rest day. Felice Gimondi of the Salvarani team won the overall general classification, his second victory. Italians Claudio Michelotto (Max Meyer) placed second, 3 min and 35 s slower than Gimondi, and Italo Zilioli (Filotex) was third, over four minutes behind Gimondi.


1969 Giro d'Italia
Eddy Merckx, who was leading the general classification, was excluded from the race after an extremely controversial anti-doping control in Savona.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Teams
A total of 13 teams were invited to participate in the 1969 Giro d'Italia. Each team sent a squad of ten riders, so the Giro began with a peloton of 130 cyclists. Riders of Italian nationality numbered the most with 113, while Belgium had the second most with eight. Out of the 130 riders that started this edition of the Giro d'Italia, a total of 81 riders made it to the finish in Milan.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
Eddy Merckx (Faema), the previous year's winner returned to defend his crown. He arrived in Italy amid a great season already with victories in the three Monuments Milan–San Remo, Tour of Flanders, and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Merckx named Felice Gimondi (Salvarani) his top rival for the upcoming race. Both Merckx and 1967 champion Gimondi were viewed as the principal favorites to win the race. Gimondi had won the Tour de Romandie and placed second in the Tour of Flanders. Both riders hoped to achieve the Giro–Tour double, for the first time since Jacques Anquetil achieved it in 1964. Gimondi had previously attempted the feat in 1965 and 1967. Merckx had specifically hoped to ride a conservative race in order to help his chances to complete the double.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
Reigning world champion Vittorio Adorni (Scic) who placed second the year before was viewed as a rider who could challenge the Gimondi–Merckx duel, despite being winless that season so far. Filotex's Italo Zilioli and Franco Bitossi were other riders who were speculated to challenge for high general classification positions. Top sprinters entering the race were Molteni's Michele Dancelli and Marino Basso.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Pre-race favorites
Spanish and French rider participation was lacking, as the former had only a single team entered and there were zero French riders competing. Notable absences included Gianni Motta and Franco Balmamion.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
The route was revealed on 27 March 1969 by race director Vincenzo Torriani. The announced route covered 4,092 km (2,543 mi), across twenty-four stages of racing. The average stage length for this edition was 170 km (106 mi). In total the route traversed 600 municipalities over 44 provinces. The route featured 26 categorized climbs that awarded points for the mountains classification, including eight of which were being scaled for the first time in race history. Five of those climbs would be stage finishes for the race.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
Four climbs were over 2,000 m (6,562 ft), while the whole race climbed a total of 29.8 km (19 mi). The route started flat before the first important stages pertaining to the general classification would be in the ninth and tenth stages. The rest day took place in San Marino on 31 May.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Route and stages
The race started in Garda and made its way south and west across the Apennines. Then the race headed south until Potenza before turning north until reaching San Marino for two stages. The race transferred to Parma and headed east again and entered the Dolomites. Traversing the Dolomites, the race headed west until its finish in Milan.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
The twentieth stage of the race from Trento to Marmolada started at 8:30 AM local time and by around 1 PM the weather was worsening and this lead race organizers to change the route in order to go through Fiera di Primiero. However, the weather there was even worse and the Torriani elected to neutralize the stage after 104 km (65 mi) of racing.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview
Following Merckx's disqualification from the race, there were rumors of riders protests. The race started an hour later than intended and the race stopped briefly in front of Merckx's hotel in an act of solidarity. Gimondi, who was promoted to first place, refused to wear the pink jersey during the seventeenth stage. However, the stage went on and the winning breakaway started roughly 30 kilometers from the race finish, with Ole Ritter attacking to win ahead of the fifteen other riders in the move. The mood of the peloton and the race's caravan was described as dismayed.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Doping
The race had doping controls and the top two riders in the general classification were drug tested after each stage, along with two other cyclists chosen at random. A mobile lab that traveled with the race and conducted the drug tests.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Doping
Eddy Merckx following as he spoke to reporters from his hotel room


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Doping
On 2 June, it was announced that the race leader Merckx had tested positive. Merckx's first test came up positive for fencamfamine, an amphetamine and a second test confirmed the positive. The word spread about Merckx's positive test while Merckx himself was still asleep. The media was able to enter Merckx's room at the Albissola Superiore as the news broke to him, where he stated "I'm sure I didn't take any doping product," as he cried on his hotel bed. Fellow riders, including Gimondi, and team directors stopped by to express their solidarity with Merckx as he faced the news.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Doping
The positive test meant Merckx was to be suspended for a month. Race director Vincenzo Torriani delayed the start of the seventeenth stage in an attempt to persuade the president of the Italian Cycling Federation to allow Merckx to begin the stage. However, the president was not in his office and Torriani was forced to start the stage, disqualifying Merckx in the process. Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) president Adriano Rodoni announced an investigation into the situation, which, in the succeeding days, resulted in the removal of the suspension.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Doping
The reaction to Merckx's expulsion was wide. Many writers sided with Merckx stating how he tested negative every other time in the race to that point before the positive on his final test. Several pointed to his clean track record and willingness to take doping controls whenever approached. A writer made note that it was widely known that riders took stimulants at the time, otherwise the pace of racing could not be kept at what it was at the time. At the time the list of banned substances varied from country to country.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Doping
There were some riders that threatened to strike at the start of the seventeenth stage. Some writers stated that the Giro was over at that point, and one went as far as to say that this might be the death of the Giro. There were hypotheses that he had consumed tainted food. Fellow cyclists also sided with Merckx, Taccone stated "It was sabotage, while Gimondi commented that if he were to win the race overall, it would have no meaning since he could not best Merckx. On the other hand, Rudi Altig told the media: "The law must be respected.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Race overview, Doping
If it had been a runner in the background, there would be no scandal. He would have been disqualified without any other form of trial. Merckx, on the other hand, is the victim, and that is why the case is experiencing such a twist." Former cyclist Marino Vigna and Faema co–director mentioned that Merckx could not have taken a tampered bottle from the ‘’tifosi’’ as he warned Merckx “from the start of the Giro against the danger of refueling during the stage by the public,” further saying that Merckx never accepted bottles from fans. However, he did say that Merckx could have gotten a bottle from a teammate that got one from a spectator.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
Two different jerseys were worn during the 1969 Giro d'Italia. The leader of the general classification – calculated by adding the stage finish times of each rider – wore a pink jersey. This classification is the most important of the race, and its winner is considered as the winner of the Giro.


1969 Giro d'Italia, Classification leadership
For the points classification, which awarded a red jersey to its leader, cyclists were given points for finishing a stage in the top 15. The mountains classification leader. The climbs were ranked in first and second categories. In this ranking, points were won by reaching the summit of a climb ahead of other cyclists. Although no jersey was awarded, there was also one classification for the teams, in which the stage finish times of the best three cyclists per team were added; the leading team was the one with the lowest total time.


1969 Giro di Lombardia
The 1969 Giro di Lombardia was the 63rd edition of the Giro di Lombardia cycle race and was held on 11 October 1969. The race started in Milan and finished in Como. The race was won by Jean-Pierre Monseré of the Flandria team.


1969 Glasgow Corporation election
An Election to Glasgow City Council was held on 6 May 1969, alongside municipal elections across Scotland. Of the councils 111 seats, 37 were up for election. The election saw Labour losing its majority, with the council being gained by a Progressive-Conservative alliance, who emerged from the election with a total of 57 of the council's 111 seats.


1969 Glasgow Corporation election
Following the election, Glasgow Corporation was composed of 37 Labour councillors, 12 Conservatives, 45 Progressives, 15 SNP, and 2 vacant ex officio members.


1969 Glasgow Corporation election
Turnout was 215,452, out of a total electorate of 609,753 (39.33% turnout).


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election
The Glasgow Gorbals by-election, 1969 was a parliamentary by-election held on 30 October 1969 for the House of Commons constituency of Glasgow Gorbals in Glasgow. It was one of five UK parliamentary by-elections held on that day.


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Background
The seat had become vacant when the sitting Labour Member of Parliament (MP), Alice Cullen had died on 31 May 1969, aged 78. She had held the seat since the by-election in 1948 following the resignation of her Labour predecessor, George Buchanan. The moving of the writ was much delayed and finally announced in early-October. Because of the recess and parliamentary convention, the formal campaign only lasted two weeks.


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Background
Labour had a good record in the seat, and in 1966, Cullen's had polled 73.1% of the votes, 50.3% ahead of the second placed Conservative candidate. The constituency's electorate had shrunk considerably in the past few years. In 1955, there had been a total of 56,627 electors, but by the time of the by-election this number had fallen to just 25,057.


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Background
Labour's nominee to defend the seat was Frank McElhone, aged 40, who was a fuiterer. The Conservatives chose William Shearer, a 59-year-old builder, while the Scottish National Party (SNP) ran Tom Brady, an electrical engineer aged 26. All three men were also sitting Glasgow councillors. As this was the first by-election in Scotland since the SNP's capture of Hamilton in 1967, there was interest in how well the SNP would perform, though privately Labour were said to be confident of victory and thought that the SNP would finish "a poor second or third."


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Background
On the day of the election, bookmakers made Labour favourites to hold the seat with odds of 10 to 1 on, with odds on SNP and Conservative victories being quoted as 6–1 against and 16–1 against respectively. An editorial in The Glasgow Herald on the day of the by-election reflected these odds stating that "as it stands, Frank McElhone looks as certain as these things can be to take the seat for Labour." However it predicted a tight contest for second place, arguing that the Conservative Shearer had fought a good campaign which might help him to just finish in front of the SNP.


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Result
The result of the contest was a victory for the Labour Party candidate, Frank McElhone, who won with a majority of 4,163 votes over the SNP candidate Tom Brady.


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Aftermath
Covering the by-election result the next day, John Warden, the political correspondent of The Glasgow Herald reported that the result was a disappointment for the SNP, arguing that "By the standards of any serious contender as a third party the S.N.P. were knocked out in Gorbals" and that given "the claims and ambitions of their leaders they need to do better than the 25% of the votes they won yesterday." Warden further argued that the result signaled "a weakening of the urban strength" that the SNP relied on and that while no one would "write the write the Nationalists off...


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Aftermath
the S.N.P. challenge has now been cut down to size." Warden also argued that of the four seats Labour held in the five by-elections held that day (they lost the fifth in Swindon to the Conservatives), the Gorbals result was the only one where the result was not too close for comfort for the Party.


1969 Glasgow Gorbals by-election, Aftermath
At the subsequent general election the following June the three main candidates faced off again, with McElhone greatly increasing his majority and vote share. Shearer also slightly increased his vote share and finished second, but the SNP vote share fell from 25% to 7.4% and Brady lost his deposit.


1969 Golden Fleece Cup
The 1969 VFL Golden Fleece Night Premiership was the Victorian Football League end of season cup competition played in September of the 1969 VFL Premiership Season. Run as a knock-out tournament, it was contested by the eight VFL teams that failed to make the 1969 VFL finals series. It was the 14th VFL Night Series competition. Games were played at the Lake Oval, Albert Park, then the home ground of South Melbourne, as it was the only ground equipped to host night games. Hawthorn won its second night series cup in a row, defeating Melbourne in the final by 5 points.


1969 Golden Helmet (Poland)
The Golden Helmet (Polish: Turniej o Złoty Kask, ZK) is an annual motorcycle speedway event, and has been organized by the Polish Motor Union (PZM) since 1961. Currently the race is held in PC Team 3rd from last season (previously Wrocław), with the top twelve riders in the Extraleague and the top four riders in the First League.


1969 Golden Helmet (Poland)
1969 Golden Helmet season was the 9th since its establishment.


1969 Golden Helmet (Poland), Final classification
Note: Result from final score was subtracted with two the weakest events.


1969 Governor General's Awards
Each winner of the 1969 Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit was selected by a panel of judges administered by the Canada Council for the Arts.


1969 Governor General's Awards, English Language
Poetry or Drama: George Bowering, Rocky Mountain Foot and The Gangs of Kosmos


1969 Grand National
The 1969 Grand National was the 123rd renewal of the Grand National horse race that took place at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England, on 29 March 1969. Twelve-year-old Highland Wedding, running in his third Grand National, was the winner by 12 lengths. He was ridden by jockey Eddie Harty, Sr., for trainer Toby Balding. The favourite was Red Alligator who fell at the 19th fence (open ditch).


1969 Grand National, Media coverage
David Coleman presented Grand National Grandstand: this would be the first National televised in colour. Peter O'Sullevan, Julian Wilson (first National commentary), Michael O'Hehir and Michael Seth-Smith provided the commentary. This would be the final television commentary on the National for both O'Hehir and Seth-Smith; however, both would continue as Grand National commentators for BBC radio until the mid-1980s. O'Hehir wrongly called Highland Wedding a faller at the second Becher's Brook (fence 22), this mistake cruelly cutting short his televised National commentaries.


1969 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
The 1969 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 21st F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix season. The season consisted of twelve Grand Prix races in six classes: 500cc, 350cc, 250cc, 125cc, 50cc and Sidecars 500cc. It began on 4 May, with Spanish Grand Prix and ended with Yugoslavian Grand Prix on 14 September.


1969 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, Season summary
Giacomo Agostini on an MV Agusta continued to dominate the larger classes, once again winning the 350 and 500 classes against little factory-mounted opposition. The 250 class saw a tight three-way battle go down to the last race with Benelli's Kel Carruthers coming out on top against Kent Andersson and Santiago Herrero. Carruther's win would mark the last time a four-stroke machine would win the 250 championship. Kawasaki claimed their first world title with Dave Simmonds winning the 125 class. Spain's Angel Nieto won his first world championship for Derbi. It would be the first of many for the Spaniard.


1969 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, Season summary
Former 125 world champion Bill Ivy was killed in a crash when his Jawa seized during practice for the East German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring. When Godfrey Nash rode a Norton Manx to victory at the Yugoslavian Grand Prix at the Opatija Circuit, it would mark the last time that a 500cc Grand Prix race was won on a single-cylinder machine.


1969 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, 1969 Grand Prix season calendar, Scoring system
Points were awarded to the top ten finishers in each race. Only the best of five were counted on 125cc championships, best of six in 50cc, 250cc and 350cc championships and best of seven in the 500cc championship, while in the Sidecars, the best of four races were counted.


1969 Grantland Rice Bowl
The 1969 Grantland Rice Bowl was an NCAA College Division game following the 1969 season, between the East Tennessee State Buccaneers and the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. This was the first time that the Grantland Rice Bowl was played in Baton Rouge, Louisiana – prior games had been played in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.


1969 Grantland Rice Bowl, Notable participants
Louisiana Tech quarterback Terry Bradshaw was selected first in the 1970 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. His teammates Larry Brewer and Tommy Spinks were also drafted. Bradshaw and Spinks are inductees of their university's athletic hall of fame, as is head coach Maxie Lambright. Bradshaw is an inductee of both the College Football Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.


1969 Grantland Rice Bowl, Notable participants
Wide receiver Pat Hauser of East Tennessee State was also selected in the 1970 NFL Draft. Inductees of the university's athletics hall of fame include Hauser, defensive back Bill Casey, quarterback Larry Graham, and head coach John Robert Bell.


1969 Green Bay Packers season
The 1969 Green Bay Packers season was their 51st season overall and their 49th season in the National Football League. The  team finished with an 8–6 record under coach Phil Bengtson, earning them a 3rd-place finish in the Central division.


1969 Green Bay Packers season, The Glory Was Gone
Without the disciplined guidance of Vince Lombardi steering the Packers for the first time in a decade, Green Bay started the season strong at 5–2 but stumbled down the stretch. Plagued by injuries and inconsistent play, the team clawed their way to their 10th winning season in the last 11 years.


1969 Green Bay Packers season, The Glory Was Gone
Regardless of the winning record, by season's end several future Hall of Famers departed or retired (among those who retired or departed that year were the likes of Willie Davis and Herb Adderley), leaving the team scrambling to rebuild its depleted roster. As eager as Packer fans were to recapture the winning ways of Lombardi, it was obvious Titletown would have to wait to regain its luster.


1969 Green Bay Packers season, Offseason, NFL Draft
The NFL Draft was held on Tuesday, January 28, 1969. The Packers had the 12th pick overall and selected Rich Moore, a Defensive Tackle from Villanova. At this stage of the draft, several high profile players, such as running backs Calvin Hill and Ron Johnson, quarterback Terry Hanratty, and defensive lineman Dave Foley, Ted Hendricks and Fred Dryer were still available. The selection of Moore was made by Phil Bengtson. The Packers Personnel Director Pat Peppler and Lombardi both disagreed with the selection. After the draft, Lombardi announced that he was leaving the club to coach the Washington Redskins.


1969 Green Bay Packers season, Roster, Preseason
On August 30, a crowd of 85,532 fans viewed a doubleheader at Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium. In the first contest, the Chicago Bears played the AFL’s Buffalo Bills, while the Cleveland Browns hosted the Green Bay Packers in the second match.


1969 Green Bay Packers season, Standings
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.


1969 Greenlandic Football Championship
The 1969 Greenlandic Football Championship was the 7th edition of the Greenlandic Men's Football Championship. The final round was held in Nuuk. It was the third football championship won by Kissaviarsuk-33.


1969 Greensboro uprising
The 1969 Greensboro uprising occurred on and around the campuses of James B. Dudley High School and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (A&T) in Greensboro, North Carolina, when, over the course of May 21 to May 25, gunfire was exchanged between student protesters, police and National Guard. One bystander, sophomore honors student Willie Grimes, was killed, although whether he was killed by police or protesters remains unknown.


1969 Greensboro uprising
The uprising was sparked by perceived civil rights issues at the segregated high school, when a popular student council write-in presidential candidate was denied his landslide victory allegedly because school officials feared his activism in the Black Power movement. Starting on the campus of Dudley High School, the uprising spread to A&T campus where students had stood up in support of the Dudley protest. Escalating violence eventually led to armed confrontation and the invasion of the A&T campus by what was described at the time as "the most massive armed assault ever made against an American university". The uprising ended soon after the National Guard made a sweep of A&T college dormitories, taking hundreds of students into protective custody.


1969 Greensboro uprising
While local officials blamed outside agitators, a report released by the North Carolina State Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights found that James B. Dudley High School had an unjust system and suppressed dissent. They found the National Guard invasion reckless and disproportionate to the actual danger, and criticized local community leaders for failing to help the Dudley High School students when the issues first emerged. They declared it "a sad commentary that the only group in the community who would take the Dudley students seriously were the students at A&T State University."


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, James B. Dudley High School
Before events began to coalesce in the spring of 1969, the students at James B. Dudley High School were already unhappy. They no longer believed that desegregation of the school system in Greensboro was a possibility. Their school was the only school in the district to place restrictions on student attire or forbid students leaving campus for lunch. But the catalyst for their uprising was their failure to elect a student council president of their choice.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, James B. Dudley High School
Even though he was not permitted on the ballot, the students attempted to place honor student Claude Barnes in the office of president as a write-in. A senior, Barnes had been politically active in his earlier years at the school, but was feared by school officials, who believed him a militant advocate of Black Power as a member of the Youth for the Unity of Black Society. Barnes won the election with 600 votes, a landslide compared to the top official candidate who received 200. But the student body was informed on May 1 that Barnes would not be permitted to run.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, James B. Dudley High School
The students of Dudley High turned for assistance to A&T. In the later 1960s, A&T was a center for the Black Power movement in the South. They took the Dudley students seriously. On May 2, A&T students attempted to join discussions with school administrators, but their several attempts proved unsuccessful.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, James B. Dudley High School
Angry response of the students began to build, with an increasing number of students boycotting classes, and armed police were seen in the vicinity of the school in riot gear. On May 9, the school superintendent effectively disempowered the school's black principal, sending in a white administrator to try to quell the trouble. Students made several attempts during this period to reach a peaceful resolution with school officials, but this administrator did not take a sympathetic or conciliatory approach to the students.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, James B. Dudley High School
On May 19, events began to reach a head. Police were called to deal with picketing, and, in the midst of alleged police misconduct, nine students were arrested. Student response damaged the school and resulted in more student arrests, as well as student injuries.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, James B. Dudley High School
On May 21, during school hours, students again assembled near the school. Police were contacted when an official indicated seeing a weapon on one of the students. Efforts by a school administrator to disperse the protesters peaceably failed when some students instead began throwing rocks through the windows of the school. Police brought tear gas against student protesters, applying it over a larger area than may have been needed for the small percentage of students involved in the protest; in some cases—according to residential bystanders—they pursued and gassed students for blocks even as they attempted to flee. Community members, some of whom were also affected by the tear gas canisters, began throwing rocks at police and cars, while students from Dudley High went again to A&T to appeal for assistance.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
Early response to the situation at Dudley had been restricted to members of the newly-formed black activism group Student Organization for Black Unity, but the events of the day brought attention from the wider campus. A&T student activist Nelson Johnson reported 400 students marching on Dudley High.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
While at first violence was contained to tear gas and rocks, the shooting started shortly thereafter. Johnson claims that the first gunfire was instigated by a carload of young white people who fired onto the A&T campus, prompting the students to defend themselves in kind. Police report sniper fire from the dormitories at 10:45 p.m. Wherever it started, the police began returning fire within two hours, and 150 National Guard were sent to the scene to keep the peace. Two students were shot.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
One of them, bystander Willie Grimes, was killed, although whether he was shot by police or protesters remains unknown. The 22-year-old Grimes had been walking with a group of friends to a restaurant at around 1:30 a.m. when shots came from a passing car. Whether or not the car was a police vehicle has long been the subject of dispute.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
Grimes' death ignited the campus. A state of emergency was declared in Greensboro and 500 more National Guardsmen called in. The university was closed down, and a curfew was set for 8p.m. to 5 a.m. During the day of May 22, violence continued, as protesters vented their anger on white motorists, overturning cars and attacking at least one of the drivers.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
That evening, in spite of the curfew, shooting resumed Early in the morning of the 23rd, a shoot-out resulted in the serious injuries of five policemen and two students, which was followed by what was described at the time by one journalist as "the most massive armed assault ever made against an American university", with—according to 2012's The Black Revolution on Campus—the descent upon A&T of 600 National Guardsmen, a tank, a helicopter, an airplane and several armed personnel carriers. A UPI reporter wrote that "it looked like war".


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
On information suggesting students may be harboring a large number of guns, then-governor Robert W. Scott ordered the invasion of the dormitory Scott Hall, the centerpoint of the shooting. At approximately 7:00 a.m., supported by smoke, "nausea" and tear gas grenades, the National Guard swept through the dorm, placing the students they found under protective custody and doing tens of thousands worth of dollars in damage. Many of the students were packing to evacuate or sleeping at the time of the invasion.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
Over 300 students from Scott Hall and neighboring dormitories were sent to state prisons, where they were detained through the day. More than 60 bullet holes left their mark on Scott Hall. Students alleged that during the sweep, personal items disappeared. When the sweep was completed, only three operable firearms had been located.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Events, North Carolina A&T State University
By the 24th, the violence was contained. The curfew was lifted and the National Guard withdrawn. The uprising was declared over on May 25.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Aftermath
Willie Grimes' funeral was attended by 2,000 people, and a marker was erected on campus in his memory.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Aftermath
Governor Scott stated that the violence had been incited by a group of hard-core militants who had seized on the high school election as a catalyst for furthering their own cause. On October 3 and 4 of that year, meetings were held to investigate the incident under the direction of the North Carolina State Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights. While local officials continued blaming "outsiders" and "radicals" for the event, the committee found that the "prevailing system" at Dudley was unjust and that the school had suppressed dissent.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Aftermath
Criticizing the inaction or ineffective action of school officials and community leaders, they declared it "a sad commentary that the only group in the community who would take the Dudley students seriously were the students at A&T State University." They also condemned the conduct of the National Guard sweep of Scott Hall, which endangered innocent students and seemed out of proportion to the actual risk, writing that "it is difficult to justify the lawlessness and the disorder in which this operation was executed."


1969 Greensboro uprising, Aftermath
In 1979, Jack Elam, Greensboro's mayor during the event, expressed discomfort with the sweep of Scott Hall, but—although he agreed that communication had been poor—declared the committee's report a "joke". Johnson, who had been arrested for inciting the Dudley students to riot and who was instrumental in bringing the committee to review the situation, wrote later that the community ignored the Advisory Committee's report. Additional black policemen were employed by the city, although by 1979 the number of black policemen were still not representative of the proportion of black residents of the area.


1969 Greensboro uprising, Aftermath
2008 saw the release of a documentary recounting the event, Walls that Bleed.


1969 Guamanian unification with the Northern Mariana Islands referendum
A referendum on union with the Northern Mariana Islands was held in Guam on 4 November 1969. The proposal was rejected by 58% of voters due to fears about an increase in taxation. Despite the result, a similar referendum was held in the Northern Mariana Islands on 9 November in which 61% of voters supported union with Guam.


1969 Guamanian unification with the Northern Mariana Islands referendum, Results
Should all of the islands of the Marianas be politically reintegrated within the framework of the American territory of Guam, such new territory to be known as the Territory of the Marianas?


1969 Guards Formula 5000 Championship
The 1969 Guards Formula 5000 Championship was a motor racing competition for Formula 5000 cars and cars with unrestricted racing engines of up to 2000cc capacity. The championship was organized in the United Kingdom but also included European rounds. It was the first and only series to carry the Guards Formula 5000 Championship name and the first in a sequence of seven annual European Formula 5000 Championships to be contested between 1969 and 1975. The championship was won by Peter Gethin, driving a McLaren M10A.


1969 Guards Formula 5000 Championship, Points system
Championship points were awarded at each round on a 500-350-250-200-150-125-100-90-80-75-70-65-60-55 basis to the first 14 drivers, with 50 points awarded for each place from 15th to 20th. The final championship placings were determined from the best eight results from the twelve rounds.


1969 Guards Formula 5000 Championship, Championship standings
The following table lists the top twenty positions in the championship.


1969 Gujarat riots
The 1969 Gujarat riots refer to the communal violence between Hindus and Muslims during September–October 1969, in Gujarat, India. The violence was Gujarat's first major riot that involved massacre, arson and looting on a large scale. It was the most deadly Hindu-Muslim violence since the partition of India in 1947, and remained so until the 1989 Bhagalpur violence.


1969 Gujarat riots
According to the official figures, 660 people were killed, 1074 people were injured and over 48,000 lost their property. Unofficial reports claim as high as 2000 deaths. The Muslim community suffered the majority of the losses. Out of the 512 deaths reported in the police complaints, 430 were Muslims. Property worth 42 million rupees was destroyed during the riots, with Muslims losing 32 million worth of property. A distinctive feature of the violence was the attack on Muslim chawls by their Dalit Hindu neighbours who had maintained peaceful relations with them until this point.


1969 Gujarat riots
The riots happened during the chief ministership of the Indian National Congress leader Hitendra Desai. The Justice Reddy Commission set up by his government blamed the Hindu nationalist organizations for the violence. Various writers trace the causes of the riots to a mix of socioeconomic and political factors. The violence started on 18 September 1969 after Muslims attacked some Hindu sadhus and a temple, after the cows herded by the sadhus caused injury to them. The Hindus later attacked a Muslim dargah, and Muslim protesters also attacked the temple again, leading to a mass breakout of violence. The riots started in Ahmedabad, and then spread to other areas, notably Vadodara, Mehsana, Nadiad, Anand and Gondal. By 26 September, the violence had been brought under control, however some more violent incidents happened during 18–28 October 1969.


1969 Gujarat riots, Background
The Hindu-Muslim tension increased considerably in Gujarat during the 1960s. Between 1961 and 1971, there were 685 incidents of communal violence in the urban areas of Gujarat (plus, another 114 in the rural areas). Out of the 685 incidents, 578 incidents happened in 1969 alone.


1969 Gujarat riots, Background
Although Ahmedabad had been divided along the caste and religious lines, it was not a communally sensitive area until the 1960s. In the 1960s, the city's textile mills attracted a large number of migrants from other parts of the state. During 1961–71, the city's population grew by nearly 38%, resulting in the rapid growth of slums in the eastern part of the city. However, the mid-1960s onwards, a number of under-qualified mill workers in Ahmedabad became unemployed, as the jobs went to the small units of Surat.


1969 Gujarat riots, Background
During the 1960s, seven large mills in Ahmedabad shut down, and around 17,000 workers lost their jobs. The Hindus were over-represented among these workers, compared to the Muslims. The Dalit Hindu workers faced a greater sense of insecurity, as the local Muslim workers were said to be more skilled in the weaving. Several violent clashes involving the textile workers took place in the slums of the city, mainly between the Hindu Dalits and the Muslims.


1969 Gujarat riots, Background
The changing socioeconomic factors also impacted the political situation in the city. The Indian National Congress had been fragmenting, leading to tensions between its factions: the Congress eventually split into Congress (O) and Congress (I) in 1969. At the same time, the Hindu nationalist organization Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) had established local strongholds in the eastern parts of the city.


1969 Gujarat riots, Background
Several incidents led to increase in tensions between the two communities in Ahmedabad. During a three-day rally held in Maninagar during 27–28 December 1968, the RSS supremo M. S. Golwalkar pleaded for a Hindu Rashtra ("Hindu nation"). On the Muslim side, provocative speeches were made at the conference of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind in June 1969.


1969 Gujarat riots, Background
On the evening of 3 March 1969, a Hindu police officer moved a handcart that was obstructing traffic near the Kalupur Tower. A copy of Koran placed on the handcart fell on the ground, resulting in a demand for an apology by a small Muslim crowd standing nearby. The crowd soon grew bigger, and twelve policemen were injured in the subsequent violent protests. On 31 August, the Muslims of the city held a massive demonstration to protest the burning of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. On 4 September, a Muslim sub-inspector, while dispersing a Ramlila festive crowd, hit a table.


1969 Gujarat riots, Background
As a result, the Hindu text Ramayana and an Aarti thali (plate) fell down. The Hindus alleged that the police officer also kicked the sacred book. This incident led to protests by Hindus, and the formation of the Hindu Dharma Raksha Samiti by the RSS leaders. The Hindu Dharma Raksha Samiti ("Hindu Religion Protection Committee") organized protests in which anti-Muslim slogans were raised. The Bharatiya Jana Sangh leader Balraj Madhok visited the city and made fiery speeches on 14 and 15 September. Another incident included an alleged assault on some Muslim maulvis, who were trying to construct a mosque in the Odhav village near Ahmedabad.


1969 Gujarat riots, September violence
On 18 September 1969, a Muslim crowd had gathered in the Jamalpur area of Ahmedabad to celebrate the local Urs festival at the tomb of a Sufi saint (Bukhari Saheb's Chilla). When the sadhus (Hindu holy men) of the nearby Jagannath temple tried to bring their cows back to the temple compound through the crowded streets, some Muslim women were injured. The cows also allegedly damaged some carts on which the Muslims were selling goods. This led to violence in which some Muslim youths attacked and injured the sadhus, and damaged the temple windows. Sevadasji, the mahant (priest) of the Hindu temple, went on a protest fast, which he gave up after a 15-member Muslim delegation led by A.M. Peerzada met him and apologized.


1969 Gujarat riots, September violence
However, subsequently, a dargah (tomb shrine) near the temple was damaged by some Hindus. A large number of Muslims protestors gathered in the area. On the afternoon of 19 September, a crowd of 2500-3000 Muslims attacked the temple again. Following this, the rumors spread and the violence escalated, resulting in several incidents of arson, murders and attacks on the places of worship around the area. The Muslims in the eastern areas of the city and its suburbs started fleeing their homes for safer areas. Several trains carrying them were stopped and attacked. A curfew was imposed on the evening of 19 September, and on the next day, the army was called in to control the violence.


1969 Gujarat riots, September violence
During 19–24 September 514 people were killed. This period also saw damage to 6,123 houses and shops, mainly by Hindus. In the afternoon of 20 September 1969, a young Muslim man, angry at the destruction of his property by Hindus, announced that he would take revenge. An angry Hindu mob beat him up and asked him to shout Jai Jagannath ("Hail Jagannath"). The Muslim man said that he would rather die. The crowd then sprinkled petrol on him and burnt him to death. The municipal corporation by-election scheduled for 22 September was postponed. The first curfew relaxation on the next day resulted in 30 deaths within the first 3 hours.


1969 Gujarat riots, September violence
According to the Justice Reddy Commission set up by the Congress Government to investigate the riots, the Hindu nationalist organizations like RSS, Hindu Mahasabha and Jan Sangh were involved in the riots.


1969 Gujarat riots, Aftermath
The Justice Jaganmohan Reddy Commission of Enquiry was set up by the Government of Gujarat's Home Department. It published a report in 1971, questioning the police's role in the riots. It found around six instances of Muslim religious places adjoining police lines or police stations being attacked or damaged. The police defended themselves claiming these police stations did not have adequate strength since the forces were busy quelling the riots at other places. However, the commission refused to entertain this argument, since there was no report of damage to a Hindu place of worship near any police station. Overall, 37 mosques, 50 dargahs, 6 kabristans (Muslim graveyards) and 3 temples were destroyed.


1969 Gujarat riots, Aftermath
The journalist Ajit Bhattacharjea accused the police of not taking any "firm action for the first three days", and stated that "this was not a matter of slackness but policy". An unnamed senior Congress leader told him that their government was reluctant to use force because it was afraid of losing power to Jan Sangh in the next elections in case it did so.


1969 Gujarat riots, Aftermath
The members of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh called the violence a revenge for the massacre of Hindus by the Muslim League in 1946. On 26 September, a Hindu organisation called Sangram Samiti claimed that the Congress-led government had been appeasing the Muslims, and had been encouraging the "abolition of Hindu religion under the name of secularism". The Hindu organizations claimed that after the alleged desecration of the Koran in March, the Hindu police officer had to apologize twice, while "it took days for taking any steps when the Hindus were similarly insulted" after the alleged desecration of the Ramayana in September.


1969 Gujarat riots, Aftermath
According to the author and social activist Achyut Yagnik, the 1969 riots were a turning point in the Hindu-Muslim relations in Gujarat, and led to a drop in the tolerance levels, which was visible in the later riots of 1992-93 and 2002. After the 1969 riots, the state saw increasing Muslim ghettoisation.


1969 Gwydir by-election
A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Gwydir on 7 June 1969. This was triggered by the resignation of Country Party MP Ian Allan, who had been appointed Secretary-General and regional director of ANZAC war graves in the Pacific Region of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. As a by-election for the seat of Bendigo had just been called, the two were held on the same day.


1969 Gwydir by-election
The by-election was won by Country Party candidate Ralph Hunt.


1969 Gwydir by-election, Candidates
The Country Party candidate, Ralph Hunt, was the NSW and federal chairman of the party, and a farmer and grazier from northern New South Wales.


1969 Gwydir by-election, Candidates
The Labor candidate, Roger Nott, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Liverpool Plains, largely located within Gwydir, from 1941 until 1961, and served as a minister in the Cahill and Heffron governments, before being appointed by the Menzies government as Administrator of the Northern Territory.


1969 Hamilton Tiger-Cats season
The 1969 Hamilton Tiger-Cats season was the 12th season for the team in the Canadian Football League and their 20th overall. The Tiger-Cats finished in 3rd place in the Eastern Conference with an 8–5–1 record, but lost the Eastern Semi-Final to the Toronto Argonauts.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500
The 1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500 was the tenth running of the Bathurst 500 production car race. It was held on 5 October 1969 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia. Cars competed in five classes based on purchase price (Australian dollars) of the vehicle.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500
The race was won by the newly formed Holden Dealer Team with Colin Bond and Tony Roberts with teammates Peter Brock and Des West finishing third in their Holden Monaro GTS350's, with the team's third car finishing sixth. In between them in second position was defending race winners Bruce McPhee and his single-lap co-driver Barry Mulholland driving a Phase 1 Ford Falcon GTHO. McPhee and Mulholland, who had won in 1968 driving the Holden Monaro GTS327, had originally intended to race a Monaro 350 in 1969 but after receiving no help from Holden, instead decided to race one of the new Falcons.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500
Peter Brock and Canadian Allan Moffat made their Bathurst débuts in the race. Brock with Harry Firth's Holden Dealer Team, and Moffat driving a works Falcon GTHO with Alan Hamilton. Between them, Brock and Moffat would go on to win 13 of the next 17 Bathurst 500/1000s (until 1987), with Brock winning a record nine times (all for Holden), and Moffat winning four times for Ford.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500
The Ford Works Team were the favourites to win the race with their new Falcon GTHOs which with their new 5.8-litre (351 cui) V8's proved to have a speed advantage over the 5.7-litre (350 cui) Monaros. However, the decision by Ford Works Team's American manager Al Turner to import special racing tyres for the Falcons proved to be a disaster. During the race numerous tyre failures put the Works cars out of contention.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500
After early tyre failures on the Ian and Leo Geoghegan car, as well as the Fred Gibson and Barry Seton car, Turner called Moffat into the pits for a tyre change. There it was found that Moffat had been far easier on his tyres than either Ian Geoghegan or Seton and that the stop was not necessary. As of 2016, Moffat believes that this decision cost himself and co-driver Alan Hamilton the race win. The day after the race, Ford ran a full page newspaper advert stating "We were a little deflated" referring to the tyre failures.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500
1969 was also notable for the first lap crash which saw at least one third of the field forced to retire or continue with accident damage. Bill Brown rolled his Falcon GTHO coming through Skyline, all but blocking the track while John French, who qualified 21st, rolled his Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV trying to avoid the carnage that Brown's rollover caused. One driver lucky to escape the carnage was Allan Moffat who had pulled up just out of The Cutting on the first lap with his Falcon stuck in neutral.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500
Once he got going he was able to weave through the bedlam at Skyline and continue on his way. For Brown, it would be the first of three rollovers at Bathurst on the same piece of road (McPhillamy Park - Skyline), with the second in 1971 bringing a lucky escape from death.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500, Class structure, Class A
The smallest class was for under cars the cost less $1,860. It was made up of Datsun 1000, Hillman Imp, Morris Mini K and Toyota Corolla.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500, Class structure, Class B
The $1,861 to $2,250 class was dominated by the Datsun 1600, but also contained Ford Cortina, Hillman Gazelle, Morris 1500, Renault 10 and Volkswagen Type 3.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500, Class structure, Class C
The $2,251 to $3,100 class saw a mix of Chrysler Valiant, Fiat 125, Ford Capri, Mazda R100, Morris Cooper S and Renault 16.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500, Class structure, Class D
The $3,101 to $4,500 class featured the outright contenders, Ford Falcon GTHO and Holden Monaro, but also contained a single Toyota Corona.


1969 Hardie-Ferodo 500, Class structure, Class E
For cars over $4,500, had a single automatic gearbox version of the Ford Falcon GT but otherwise was all Alfa Romeo with 1750 GTV and a single 1750 Berlina.