1998 Russian financial crisis
The Russian financial crisis (also called ruble crisis or the Russian flu) hit Russia on 17 August 1998. It resulted in the Russian government and the Russian Central Bank devaluing the ruble and defaulting on its debt. The crisis had severe impacts on the economies of many neighboring countries. Meanwhile, James Cook, the senior vice president of The U.S. Russia Investment Fund, suggested the crisis had the positive effect of teaching Russian banks to diversify their assets.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
Declining productivity, a high fixed exchange rate between the ruble and foreign currencies to avoid public turmoil, fatal financial imprudence and a chronic fiscal deficit were the reasons that led to the crisis. The economic cost of the first war in Chechnya took a significant toll on the Russian economy. In early 1995, it was estimated that the war was costing Russia close to $30 million per day. Following the cessation of hostilities in 1996, it was estimated that the war in Chechnya cost Russia $5.5 billion, close to 10% of their GDP.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
In the first half of 1997, the Russian economy showed some signs of improvement. However, soon after this, the problems began to gradually intensify. Two external shocks, the Asian financial crisis that had begun in 1997 and the following declines in demand for (and thus price of) crude oil and nonferrous metals, severely impacted Russian foreign exchange reserves. A political crisis came to a head in March when Russian president Boris Yeltsin suddenly dismissed Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and his entire cabinet on 23 March 1998. Yeltsin named Energy Minister Sergei Kiriyenko, then 35 years old, as acting prime minister.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
On 29 May 1998, Yeltsin appointed Boris Fyodorov as Head of the State Tax Service.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
In an effort to prop up the currency and stem the flight of capital, in June 1998 Kiriyenko hiked GKO interest rates to 150%.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
A $22.6 billion International Monetary Fund and World Bank financial package was approved on 13 July 1998 to support reforms and stabilize the Russian market by swapping out an enormous volume of the quickly maturing GKO short-term bills into long-term Eurobonds. The Russian government decided to keep the exchange rate of the ruble within a narrow band, although many economists, including Andrei Illarionov, urged the government to abandon its support of the ruble.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
On 12 May 1998, coal miners went on strike over unpaid wages, blocking the Trans-Siberian Railway. By 1 August 1998 there was approximately $12.5 billion in debt owed to Russian workers. On 14 August 1998 the exchange rate of the Russian ruble to the US dollar was still 6.29. Despite the bailout, July 1998 monthly interest payments on Russia's debt rose to a figure 40 percent higher than its monthly tax collections.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
Additionally, on 15 July 1998, the State Duma dominated by left-wing parties refused to adopt most of the government anti-crisis plan, so the government was forced to rely on presidential decrees. On 29 July Yeltsin interrupted his vacation in Valdai Hills region and flew to Moscow, prompting fears of a Cabinet reshuffle, but he only replaced Federal Security Service Chief Nikolay Kovalyov with Vladimir Putin.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
At the time, Russia employed a "floating peg" policy toward the ruble, meaning that the Central Bank decided that at any given time the ruble-to-dollar (or RUB/USD) exchange rate would stay within a particular range. If the ruble threatened to devalue outside of that range (or "band"), the Central Bank would intervene by spending foreign reserves to buy rubles. For instance, during the year before the crisis, the Central Bank aimed to maintain a band of 5.3 to 7.1 RUB/USD, meaning that it would buy rubles if the market exchange rate threatened to exceed 7.1 rubles/dollar. Similarly, it would sell rubles if the market exchange rate threatened to drop below 5.3.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
The inability of the Russian government to implement a coherent set of economic reforms led to a severe erosion in investor confidence and a chain reaction that can be likened to a run on the Central Bank. Investors fled the market by selling rubles and Russian assets (such as securities), which also put downward pressure on the ruble. This forced the Central Bank to spend its foreign reserves to defend Russia's currency, which in turn further eroded investor confidence and undermined the ruble. It is estimated that between 1 October 1997 and 17 August 1998, the Central Bank expended approximately $27 billion of its U.S. dollar reserves to maintain the floating peg.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Background and course of events
It was later revealed that about $5 billion of the international loans provided by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund were stolen upon the funds' arrival in Russia on the eve of the meltdown.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
On 17 August 1998, the Russian government devalued the ruble, defaulted on domestic debt, and declared a moratorium on repayment of foreign debt. On that day the Russian government and the Central Bank of Russia issued a "Joint Statement" announcing, in essence, that:


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
On 17 August 1998 the government declared that certain state securities (GKOs and OFZs) would be transformed into new securities.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
At the same time, in addition to widening the currency band, authorities also announced that they intended to allow the RUB/USD rate to move more freely within the wider band.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
At the time, the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange (or "MICEX") set a daily "official" exchange rate through a series of interactive auctions based on written bids submitted by buyers and sellers. When the buy and sell prices matched, this "fixed" or "settled" the official MICEX exchange rate, which would then be published by Reuters. The MICEX rate was (and is) commonly used by banks and currency dealers worldwide as the reference exchange rate for transactions involving the Russian ruble and foreign currencies.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
From 17 to 25 August 1998, the ruble steadily depreciated on the MICEX, moving from 6.43 to 7.86 RUB/USD. On 26 August 1998, the Central Bank terminated dollar-ruble trading on the MICEX, and the MICEX did not fix a ruble-dollar rate that day.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
On 2 September 1998 the Central Bank of the Russian Federation decided to abandon the "floating peg" policy and float the ruble freely. By 21 September 1998 the exchange rate reached 21 rubles for one US dollar, meaning it lost two-thirds of its value of less than a month earlier.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
On 28 September 1998 Boris Fyodorov was discharged from the position of the Head of the State Tax Service.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects
The moratorium imposed by the Joint Statement expired on 15 November 1998, and the Russian government and Central Bank did not renew it.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects, Inflation
Russian inflation in 1998 reached 84 percent and welfare costs grew considerably. Many banks, including Inkombank, Oneximbank and Tokobank, closed as a result of the crisis.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects, Banking
Bankers Trust suffered major losses in the summer of 1998 due to the bank having a large position in Russian government bonds, but avoided financial collapse by being acquired by Deutsche Bank for $10 billion in November 1998. This made Deutsche Bank the fourth-largest money management firm in the world after UBS, Fidelity Investments, and the Japanese post office's life insurance fund.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects, Agriculture
The main effect of the crisis on Russian agricultural policy has been a dramatic drop in federal subsidies to the sector, about 80 percent in real terms compared with 1997, though subsidies fromregional budgets fell less.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects, Political fallout
The financial collapse resulted in a political crisis as Yeltsin, with his domestic support evaporating, had to contend with an emboldened opposition in the parliament. A week later, on 23 August 1998, Yeltsin fired Kiriyenko and declared his intention of returning Chernomyrdin to office as the country slipped deeper into economic turmoil. Powerful business interests, fearing another round of reforms that might cause leading enterprises to fail, welcomed Kiriyenko's fall, as did the Communists.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects, Political fallout
Yeltsin, who began to lose his hold on power as his health deteriorated, wanted Chernomyrdin back, but the legislature refused to give its approval. After the Duma rejected Chernomyrdin's candidacy twice, Yeltsin, his power clearly on the wane, backed down. Instead, he nominated Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov, who was approved by the State Duma by an overwhelming majority on 11 September 1998.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects, Political fallout
Primakov's appointment restored political stability because he was seen as a compromise candidate able to heal the rifts between Russia's quarreling interest groups. There was popular enthusiasm for Primakov as well. Primakov promised to make payment of wages and pensions his government's first priority and invited members of the leading parliamentary factions into his Cabinet.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Crisis and effects, Political fallout
Communists and the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia staged a nationwide strike on 7 October 1998 and called on President Yeltsin to resign. On 9 October 1998, Russia, which was also suffering from a poor harvest, appealed for international humanitarian aid, including food.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Recovery
Russia bounced back from the August 1998 financial crash with surprising speed. Much of the reason for the recovery is that world oil prices increased rapidly during 1999–2000 and Russia ran a large trade surplus in 1999 and 2000. Another reason is that domestic industries, such as food processing, had benefited from the devaluation, which caused a steep increase in the prices of imported goods.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Recovery
Also, since Russia's economy was operating to such a large extent on barter and other non-monetary instruments of exchange, the financial collapse had far less of an impact on many producers than it would had the economy been dependent on a banking system. Finally, the economy was helped by an infusion of cash. As enterprises were able to pay off debts in back wages and taxes, in turn consumer demand for goods and services produced by Russian industry began to rise.


1998 Russian financial crisis, Positive effect
The crisis was praised by James Cook, the senior vice president of The U.S. Russia Investment Fund, on the basis that it taught Russian bankers to diversify their assets.


1998 Russian gubernatorial elections
Gubernatorial elections in 1998 took place in ten regions of the Russian Federation.


1998 Russian gubernatorial elections, Overview
1998 saw the re-election of the heads of administrations of the "first wave" elected in April 1993 in Lipetsk, Penza and Smolensk Oblasts and Krasnoyarsk Krai, as well as the presidents of Bashkortostan, Buryatia, Ingushetia and North Ossetia and the chairman of the government of Karelia. For the first time, direct elections were held in Mordovia. The transition to a presidential system was discussed in the last two parliamentary republics, Dagestan and Udmurtia. In Dagestan, on June 25, the Chairman of the State Council Magomedali Magomedov was re-elected for a new term by the Constitutional Assembly, same as in 1994. In Udmurtia, members of the State Council constantly rejected bills on direct elections introduction, proposed by the Council's speaker.


1998 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team
The 1998 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team represented Rutgers University in the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their third season under head coach Terry Shea, the Scarlet Knights compiled a 5–6 record, were outscored by opponents 376 to 206, and finished in sixth place in the Big East Conference. The team's statistical leaders included Mike McMahon with 2,203 passing yards, Jacki Crooks with 821 rushing yards, and Bill Powell with 730 receiving yards.


1998 Réunionese Regional Council election
Regional Council elections were held in Réunion in 1998 as part of the French regional elections. The Communist Party of Réunion–Socialist Party–Miscellaneous left alliance emerged as the largest faction in the Council, winning 19 of the 45 seats.


1998 S.League
The 1998 S.League was the third season of the S.League, the top professional football league in Singapore. Teams played each other once both home and away, in a 20-match season.


1998 S.League
The 1998 S.League was won by Singapore Armed Forces, their second consecutive title.


1998 S.League, Teams
Jurong left Bukit Gombak Stadium upon completion of their new home ground Jurong East Stadium. Home United also relocated, leaving Jalan Besar Stadium to move into Bishan Stadium. Two new teams entered into the competition – Gombak United (who took the place of Jurong playing at Bukit Gombak Stadium) and Marine Castle United who made Hougang Stadium their home – taking the number of participating teams to eleven. Tiong Bahru United were renamed Tanjong Pagar United for the 1998 season.


1998 S.League, Foreign players
Each club is allowed to have up to a maximum of 5 foreign players.


1998 S.League, League table
Singapore Armed Forces qualified to compete in the 1999–2000 Asian Club Championship. This was their second appearance in continental competition. The club met with more success than in their first appearance, defeating Royal Dolphins of the Cambodian League 11–3 on aggregate in the East Asian first round. They were defeated in the second round by Sinthana of the Thai Premier League, going down 3–2 on aggregate.


1998 SANFL Grand Final
The 1998 SANFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football competition. Port Adelaide beat Sturt by 75 to 66.


1998 SANFL season
The 1998 South Australian National Football League season was the 119th season of the top-level Australian rules football competition in South Australia.


1998 SASF season
The South Australian Soccer Federation 1998 season consisted of two divisions, one of ten and one of twelve teams, across the State of South Australia.


1998 SASF season, 1998 SASF Premier League
The 1998 South Australian Premier League season was the top level domestic association football competition in South Australia for 1998. It was contested by 10 teams in a single 18 round league format, each team playing all of their opponents twice.


1998 SASF season, 1998 SASF State League
The 1998 South Australian State League season was the second highest domestic level association football competition in South Australia. It was contested by 12 teams in a 22 round league format, each team playing all of their opponents twice. West Adelaide and Adelaide City refused to take part in the finals series.


1998 SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge
The 1998 SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge was the ninth running of the Sports Car Club of America's World Challenge series. It was the final year before SpeedVision purchased the series, thus giving the World Challenge a TV contract. This led to the series' popularity growing and ultimately surpassing that of the Trans Am Series. 1998 was the final year of the T1/T2 format, as Speed reformatted the classes into GT and TC.


1998 SEAT Open
The 1998 SEAT Open was a women's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts in Kockelscheuer, Luxembourg that was part of Tier III of the 1998 WTA Tour. It was the third edition of the tournament and was held from 26 October until 31 October 1998. Second-seeded Mary Pierce won the singles title and earned $27,000 first-prize money.


1998 SEAT Open, Finals, Doubles
Elena Likhovtseva /  Ai Sugiyama defeated  Larisa Neiland /  Elena Tatarkova 6–7, 6–3, 2–0 (Neiland and Tatarkova retired)


1998 SEAT Open – Doubles
Larisa Neiland and Helena Suková were the defending champions but only Neiland competed that year with Elena Tatarkova.


1998 SEAT Open – Doubles
Neiland and Tatarkova lost the final 6–7, 6–3, 2–0 after they were forced to retire against Elena Likhovtseva and Ai Sugiyama.


1998 SEAT Open – Doubles, Seeds
Champion seeds are indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which those seeds were eliminated.


1998 SEAT Open – Singles
Amanda Coetzer was the defending champion but lost in the first round to Elena Tatarkova.


1998 SEAT Open – Singles
Mary Pierce won the final 6–0, 2–0 after Silvia Farina was forced to retire.


1998 SEAT Open – Singles, Seeds
A champion seed is indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which that seed was eliminated. The top two seeds received a bye to the second round.


1998 SEC Championship Game
The 1998 SEC Championship Game was won by the Tennessee Volunteers 24-14 over the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The game was played in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on December 5, 1998, and was televised to a national audience on ABC.


1998 SEC Championship Game
Mississippi State took a 14-10 lead in the fourth quarter with an 83-yard punt return. The game was clinched when Tee Martin threw two touchdown passes (Peerless Price and Cedric Wilson) in the span of 32 seconds in the fourth quarter.


1998 SEC Men's Basketball Tournament
The 1998 SEC Men's Basketball Tournament took place from March 5–8, 1998 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. Kentucky won the tournament and received the SEC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament by beating the South Carolina Gamecocks on March 8, 1998.


1998 SEC Men's Basketball Tournament, Television coverage
Tournament coverage in the first and second rounds, and the semi-finals were provided by Jefferson Pilot Sports, who at the time was in its 11th season with regional syndication rights to the SEC. The championship game, however, was broadcast by CBS Sports.


1998 SMU Mustangs football team
The 1998 SMU Mustangs football team represented Southern Methodist University in the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season as members of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in the Mountain Division. They played their home games at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Head coach Mike Cavan returned for his second season leading SMU, following a 6–5 season in 1997, SMU's first winning season since  the 1987–88 SMU "death penalty" was handed down by the NCAA, the highest punishment possible in the association. SMU finished the season 5–7 (4–4 WAC), but SMU vacated 10 games after Steve Malin was found to have been ineligible due to academic fraud.


1998 SMU Mustangs football team, After the season, NFL Draft
Two members of the 1998 SMU squad were selected in the 1999 NFL Draft. Defensive back Donald Mitchell was selected in the fourth round and 117th overall by the Tennessee Titans. Defensive back Coby Rhinehart was selected in the sixth round and 190th overall by the Arizona Cardinals.


1998 SMU Mustangs football team, After the season, Steve Malin controversy
Twelve years after the NCAA "death penalty" that caused the SMU football program to shut down for two years, SMU encountered another scandal. SMU notified the NCAA of possible recruiting violations in early August 1999 and subsequently suspended defensive line coach Steve Malin. On November 7, 1999, The Dallas Morning News reported that former SMU football player Corlin Donaldson alleged that Malin paid another person $100 to take Donaldson's ACT exam in 1998 so that Donaldson would be eligible to attend SMU.


1998 SMU Mustangs football team, After the season, Steve Malin controversy
Although Donaldson described this account to NCAA investigators, Donaldson recanted this story under pressure from Malin to save Malin's job. Following an internal investigation, SMU fired Malin on December 8, 1999; Malin had been suspended that year since August 3 without a replacement at his position. Additionally, SMU removed one assistant coach from recruiting roles for the 2000 season, reduced a total of 8 scholarships for the 2000 and 2001 seasons, and reduced a total of 16 official campus visits for high school recruits for those seasons as well. SMU also submitted a report to the NCAA.


1998 SMU Mustangs football team, After the season, Steve Malin controversy
On December 13, 2000, the NCAA placed SMU on two years' probation and vacated ten games from SMU's 1998 season in which Donaldson played, which reduced SMU's record to 1-1 for 1998. SMU's 2005 media guide indicates that the NCAA vacated the first ten games of the 1998 season.


1998 SMU Mustangs football team, After the season, Steve Malin controversy
The NCAA reported that its infractions committee "concluded that the assistant football coach [Malin] initially suggested that the prospective student-athlete [Donaldson] should participate in academic fraud, actively assisted in the initial fraudulent ACT, had actual knowledge of the fraud in the second ACT and finally, had reason to know that the prospect, after enrolling at the university and becoming a student-athlete, was ineligible to compete by reason of the academic fraud." Additionally, the NCAA also discovered rules violations regarding recruiting and tryouts dating back to 1995. The NCAA also extended SMU's self-imposed restrictions on coaches' off-campus recruiting to the 2001 season and limited official visits for high school recruits to 38 for the 2001–02 school year. Malin also was assessed a seven-year show-cause penalty.


1998 Sacramento Monarchs season
The 1998 WNBA season was the 2nd season for the Sacramento Monarchs. The team tied with the Utah Starzz for the worst record in the Western Conference.


1998 Sacramento Monarchs season, Offseason
Tajama Abraham was picked up by the Detroit Shock in the 1998 WNBA Expansion Draft.


1998 Sacramento State Hornets football team
The 1998 Sacramento State Hornets football team represented Sacramento State University during the 1998 NCAA Division I-AA football season.


1998 Sacramento State Hornets football team
Sacramento State competed in the Big Sky Conference. The Hornets were led by fourth-year head coach John Volek and played home games at Hornet Stadium in Sacramento, California. They finished with a record of five wins and six losses (5–6, 3–5 Big Sky). Sacramento State was outscored by its opponents 289–300 for the season.


1998 Sacramento State Hornets football team, Team players in the NFL
No Sacramento State players were selected in the 1999 NFL Draft.


1998 Sacramento State Hornets football team, Team players in the NFL
The following finished their college career in 1998, were not drafted, but played in the NFL.


1998 Safari Rally
The 1998 Safari Rally (formally the 46th Safari Rally Kenya) was held between 28 February and 2 March 1998. It was the first World Rally Championship victory for Richard Burns and his co-driver Robert Reid after his teammate Tommi Mäkinen and fellow Briton Colin McRae both retired.


1998 Safari Rally, Report, WRC
A total of 49 cars gathered in Nairobi for the Safari Rally of 1998. The young Briton, 27-year-old Richard Burns, won stage 1. But his more experienced teammate, Tommi Mäkinen, snatched the lead in stage 2. He was determined to win for the second time, as 1996's winner. But his hopes were dashed after his timing belt broke, causing him to retire. Burns retained the lead as a result, held it to the end, and won his first WRC rally in his career. It was the Ford Escorts of the Finns Juha Kankkunen and Ari Vatanen, both previous Safari Rally winners, who completed the podium in second and third respectively.


1998 Safari Rally, Report, PWRC
Luis Climent, in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III, had his first victory of the year. Manfred Stohl finished behind him in second, and the Kenyan Paul Bailey completed the podium.


1998 Saint Francis Cougars football team
The 1998 Saint Francis Cougars football team represented the University of Saint Francis, located in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in the 1998 NAIA football season. They were led by head coach Kevin Donley, who served his 1st year as the first and only head coach in the history of Saint Francis football. The Cougars played their home games at Cougar Stadium and were members of the Mid-States Football Association (MSFA) Mideast League (MEL). The year was the inaugural season of Cougars football.


1998 Saint Silvester Road Race
The 1998 Saint Silvester Road Race (Portuguese: Corrida Internacional de São Silvestre de 1998) was the 74th edition of the Saint Silvester Road Race and held in São Paulo, Brazil, on December 31, 1998. The distance ran by the participating athletes was 15 km.


1998 Saint Silvester Road Race
The men's race was won by Kenya's Paul Tergat, his third victory, whereas the women's event was won by Serbia and Montenegro's Olivera Jevtić, her first triumph.


1998 Saint Silvester Road Race
The podiums were composed of the first seven men and the first five women.


1998 Saint Silvester Road Race, Classification, Men
For the complete record, with all the 9,390 runners that qualified in the official results board, please visit the referenced website below.


1998 Saint Silvester Road Race, Classification, Women
For a complete record, with all the 750 runners that qualified in the official results board, please visit the official website referenced below.


1998 Salem Open
The 1998 Salem Open was a men's tennis tournament played on Hard courts in Hong Kong that was part of the International Series of the 1998 ATP Tour. It was the 23rd edition of the tournament and was held from 6 April – 12 April, 1998.


1998 Salem Open, Champions, Doubles
Byron Black /  Alex O'Brien def. Neville Godwin /  Tuomas Ketola, 7–5, 6–1.


1998 Salem Open – Doubles
The 1998 Salem Open was a men's tennis tournament played on Hard courts in Hong Kong that was part of the International Series of the 1998 ATP Tour. It was the 23rd edition of the tournament and was held from 6–12 April 1998.


1998 Salem Open – Doubles, Seeds
Champion seeds are indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which those seeds were eliminated.


1998 Salem Open – Singles
The 1998 Salem Open was a men's tennis tournament played on Hard courts in Hong Kong that was part of the International Series of the 1998 ATP Tour. It was the 23rd edition of the tournament and was held from 6–12 April 1998.


1998 Salem Open – Singles, Seeds
Champion seeds are indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which those seeds were eliminated.


1998 Salford City Council election
The 1998 Salford Council election took place on 7 May 1998 to elect members of Salford Metropolitan Borough Council in Greater Manchester, England. One-third of the council was up for election and the Labour party kept overall control of the council. Overall turnout was 19.39%.


1998 Sammarinese general election
General elections were held in San Marino on 31 May 1998. The Sammarinese Christian Democratic Party remained the largest party, winning 25 of the 60 seats in the Grand and General Council.


1998 Sammarinese general election, Electoral system
Voters had to be citizens of San Marino and at least 18 years old.


1998 Sammarinese local elections
The 1998 Sammarinese local elections were held on 13 December to elect the mayors and the councils of Acquaviva, Borgo Maggiore, Faetano, Fiorentino and Serravalle in San Marino. Overall turnout was 64.0%.


1998 Sammarinese local elections, Electoral system
Voters elected the mayor (Italian: capitano di castello) and the municipal council (giunta di castello). The number of seats was determined by law: the city councilsof Acquaviva, Faetano and Fiorentino were composed of eight members; the councils of Borgo Maggiore and Serravalle were composed of 10 members.


1998 Sammarinese local elections, Electoral system
Candidates ran on lists led by a mayoral candidate. Voters elected a list and were allowed to give up to two preferential votes. Seats were allocated with the d'Hondt method if the winner had obtained at least 60% of the votes. Otherwise, six seats would have been allocated to the winning party (five seats where the council was composed of eight seats) and the rest of the seats would have been allocated using the d'Hondt method to the rest of the parties. The winning list mayoral candidate was proclaimed mayor.


1998 Sammarinese local elections, Electoral system
In the municipalities where only one list contested the election, the election was considered valid if the turnout was over 50% and the votes to the list were over 50% of the valid votes (votes to the list plus blank votes).


1998 Samoa National League
The 1998 Samoa National League, or also known as the Upolo First Division, was the 10th edition of the Samoa National League, the top league of the Football Federation Samoa. Vaivase-tai won their fifth title, their first since the 1983 championship.


1998 San Diego Chargers season
The 1998 San Diego Chargers season was the franchise's 29th season in the National Football League (NFL), its 39th overall and was the second and final season under Kevin Gilbride. After a 2–4 start, Gilbride was fired and June Jones coached the final ten games of the season as interim head coach, the team going 3-7 under his stewardship. San Diego's defense led the league in yards allowed; however, a weak offense under infamous draft bust quarterback Ryan Leaf meant that the team was last in the AFC West.


1998 San Diego Chargers season
With the retirement of Stan Humphries, the Chargers went into the draft seeking a new quarterback. There were two outstanding prospects; when Indianapolis took future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning, Leaf went to San Diego. Immediately named the starter, he began 2-0 before an infamous performance at Kansas City, after which he was caught on camera shouting at a reporter.


1998 San Diego Chargers season
Leaf finished with 15 interceptions and only two touchdown passes in ten games; Craig Whelihan replaced him as the starter for the final seven games, but also performed poorly. The two combined for 34 interceptions, the worst tally in the NFL for a decade; San Diego had 51 turnovers in total, 8 more than any other team in 1998. The inexperienced quarterbacks were hampered by the departure of star receiver Tony Martin during the offseason. In his absence, Charlie Jones led the team with 699 yards, while tight end Freddie Jones had the most receptions with 57. Natrone Means returned to lead the rushing attack after two seasons in Jacksonville. He performed well prior to a season ending injury, gaining 883 yards in ten games.


1998 San Diego Chargers season
On defense, Norman Hand was promoted to starting defensive tackle, and led the team with 6.0 sacks; Greg Jackson had the most interceptions, with six. Pro bowlers Junior Seau and Rodney Harrison made 115 and 114 tackles respectively - the most any other player had was 63. Kicker John Carney, who had been injured for most of the previous season, returned and converted 26 attempts out of 30.


1998 San Diego Chargers season
The ineffective offense, and rookie Leaf's obnoxious behavior toward teammates, damaged morale; outside linebacker Lew Bush recalled, "Try going into a game youhave no chance of winning, knowing that if you give up more than one touchdown, it's over". Strong safety Rodney Harrison described the season as "a nightmare you can't even imagine. If I had to go through another year like that, I'd probably quit playing".


1998 San Diego Chargers season
Following the season, Oregon State Head Coach Mike Riley would be named Head Coach.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 1
A missed field goal allowed the Chargers to escape with a win on Ryan Leaf's debut. Leaf had an uncertain start, fumbling his first snap (the Chargers recovered), and throwing an interception in Bills' territory. The San Diego defense, however, allowed only 73 yards in the first half, and the Chargers led 3-0 at the break.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 1
Leaf found Bryan Still for 67 yards on the first play of the 3rd quarter, and hit the same player on a fade route two plays later for his first NFL touchdown pass. However, with San Diego up 13-7 in the 4th quarter, Leaf threw his second interception, setting up Buffalo for a 31-yard drive culminating when Doug Flutie and Andre Reed combined for their second touchdown pass of the day. John Carney's 54-yard field goal on the next possession clipped the upright but still went through, restoring the lead.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 1
Buffalo faced a 4th and 26 on their final possession, but a 36-yard pass interference penalty on Terrence Shaw kept the drive going. Seven plays later, Steve Christie, who had earlier missed from just 21 yards out, pushed a 39 yarder wide left with three seconds left, and the Chargers had the win.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 1
This game constituted the first time since 1985 that the Chargers played the Buffalo Bills. The reason for this is that before the admission of the Texans in 2002, NFL scheduling formulas for games outside a team's division were much more influenced by table position during the previous season.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 2
Another strong defensive performance gave San Diego their second win. The lone Tennessee score was aided by a fake punt on 4th and 10; after Natrone Means put the Chargers up 13-7 in the 3rd quarter, the Oilers failed to cross midfield in their final four possessions. Ryan Leaf had a cleaner game, passing for 179 yards with no turnovers, while rushing for 31 yards, including a 20-yard scramble that set up Means' touchdown. Leaf became the first rookie to start 2-0 since John Elway in 1983, but would win only twice more in his entire career.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 3
The Chiefs' defense brought Ryan Leaf savagely back down to earth, as he posted the only 0.0 passer rating by any QB during the 1998 season. Leaf completed 1 pass in 15 attempts for 4 yards, with no touchdowns and two interceptions - he also lost three fumbles, committing five turnovers on the Chargers' first seven possessions. With a pair of sacks pushing them to minus-19 net passing yards, the Chargers had the worst total by any NFL team for 13 years.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 3
Natrone Means was the lone bright spot on offense; he ran 22 times for a career-high 165 yards, and prevented the shutout with a career-long 72 yard touchdown run.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 4
Leaf struggled again, throwing interceptions on three consecutive first half possessions as the Giants built a 21-0 lead. An improvement saw John Carney hit three field goals in quick succession, sandwiched around the halftime break, closing the gap to 12 points. However, Leaf then threw a fourth interception, this one returned by Percy Ellsworth for a touchdown. The rookie QB was then benched for Craig Whelihan, who promptly hit Charlie Jones for a 41-yard touchdown, but could get the team no closer.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 5
This game featured the first two picks in the 1998 NFL draft. Ryan Leaf had previously outplayed Peyton Manning in a preseason game, but this was their first and only competitive meeting.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 5
Manning had the better start, hitting Marshall Faulk for the opening score after Leaf had been intercepted; a trick play on the conversion made it 8-0 to the Colts. The defenses took over from there, with two field goals each the only scores until the final few minutes. Then Leaf found Charlie Jones for a 56-yard completion down to the one, and Means ran it in on the next play. However, Leaf's two-point conversion pass fell incomplete, leaving the score at 14-12. Indianapolis recovered an onside kick attempt and added a field goal, before stopping San Diego on downs with 33 seconds remaining.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 5
The win was Peyton Manning's first in the NFL. The two quarterbacks had nearly identical stat lines, each completing 12 of 23 passes while throwing one interception. Leaf had a small yardage advantage (160 to 137), while Manning had the game's lone touchdown pass. Means rushed for 130 yards on 31 carries.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 6
A late lapse cost the Chargers victory in a game of uncommon defensive dominance. The Raiders' Leo Araguz set an NFL record by punting 16 times in the game, with 14 of these coming after going three-and-out. Starting QB Donald Hollis completed only 12 passes out of 25 for 101 yards and an interception, while their rushing attack was limited to 18 yards on 18 carries.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 6
San Diego's offense fared little better. They opened the scoring with a John Carney field goal, but that came after a 56-yard punt return by Latario Rachal set them up at the Raiders' 20. Ryan Leaf completed 7 of 18 passes for 78 yards, with three passes picked off. After the last of these, he was pulled in favour of Craig Whelihan, who threw a further interception on his second passing attempt. On their next possession, the Chargers quit attempting to pass entirely, calling nothing but runs on a 13 play, 68-yard drive that took up most of the 4th quarter, and led to Carney's second field goal.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 6
Following an exchange of punts, the Raiders took over on their own 32, where they faced a 3rd and 10 with 1:38 remaining. Backup QB Wade Wilson, who had missed on his first six passes, then found James Jett behind the defense for the winning touchdown. San Diego tried to respond, but on a 4th and 6 from the Raiders' 38, Means was stopped inches short of a first down and Oakland ran out the clock.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 6
Means was again the lone highlight on offense for the Chargers, gaining 101 yards on 37 carries, while his 167 combined yards rushing and receiving accounted for over 85% of the Chargers 195 yards of total offense. For the Raiders, over 42% of their 159 yards came on the winning play.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 6
Head coach Kevin Gilbride was fired three days after the game. Quarterbacks coach June Jones took his place for the remainder of the campaign.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 6
The NFL released highlights of the game, titled "The UGLIEST Win EVER!"


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 7
In a familiar story, it was Natrone Means (112 yards) and the defense who led San Diego as they broke their four game losing streak. Means rushed four times for 32 yards on the game's opening possession, leading to a field goal; on the first Charger drive of the second half, he carried four times for 43 yards and a touchdown. Leaf passed for only 83 yards, and lost 55 yards in sacks, but threw no interceptions, and San Diego won the turnover battle for the first time all season (4-1). Norman Hand intercepted a tipped pass to set up the game-winning field goal, and Junior Seau ended the final Eagles threat when he recovered a fumble caused by Charles Dimry.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 8
A much-improved offensive showing was not enough to prevent the Chargers from slipping to 3-5 heading into their bye. The Chargers gained a season-high 391 yards, and committed no turnovers for the second and final time all year. The Seahawks, however, took a 17-3 lead on the strength of two long touchdowns from Joey Galloway - an 81-yard reception and a 74-yard punt return. The Chargers responded, Mikhael Ricks catching a 5-yard scoring pass from Leaf (his first touchdown throw since the opener), and Means tying the scores midway through the third quarter.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 8
Seattle rebuilt their lead, and the Chargers trailed by 7 going into their final possession, starting on their own 20 with 2:43 to play. Leaf led the team all the way down to the Seahawks' 3-yard line, converting a 4th and 6 en route, but then threw three incompletions as time expired.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 10
Even with Bubby Brister filling in for the injured John Elway for much of the game, the unbeaten Broncos cruised to the win. San Diego could muster only two first downs through their first eight drives, which ended with seven punts and an interception thrown to ex-Charger Darrien Gordon by Leaf, who was then benched; his figures were 4 completions from 15 attempts, for just 26 yards. With the Broncos out of reach up 27-0, Craig Whelihan came in and had some success moving the offense, leading a 92-yard drive capped by a touchdown pass to Freddie Jones. Interim head coach June Jones named Whelihan the new starting QB after the game, a position he would remain in for the rest of the season.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 11
Whelihan won his first start of the season, though it was again the defense who deserved most of the credit, holding the Ravens to 161 total yards and eight first downs all game. Natrone Means sustained a season-ending foot injury, and Whelihan completed only 15 passes from 42 attempts, though he did manage a 47-yard touchdown to Charlie Jones. Ravens' errors played a part in the second Charger touchdown, as they twice prolonged the drive with penalties for leverage on field goal attempts. Terrell Fletcher finished the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 11
A controversial play occurred six minutes from time, when Jermaine Lewis fell while hurdling a trip from punter Darren Bennett, got back to his feet and completed what appeared to be a 90-yard touchdown return. However, officials ruled that Bennett had made contact with his leg, and that Lewis was down at the Baltimore 45. The Ravens would settle for a field goal on that drive, and were stopped on downs inside their own 20 on their lone possession afterwards.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 12
An improbable 4th quarter recovery saw the Chargers improve their record to 5-6. San Diego began brightly, a pair of rushing touchdowns by Terrell Fletcher and Tremayne Stephens putting them up 17-7 in the 2nd quarter. However, their offense then fell dormant for most of the game. Whelihan committed a pair of turnovers, and Bam Morris scored three times as the Chiefs ran off 27 unanswered points, going up 34-17 early in the 4th quarter.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 12
A second Fletcher touchdown run drew the Chargers within 10 points and, following a Pete Stoyanovich field goal, Whelihan hit Freddie Jones for a 25-yard touchdown on 4th and 13. The Chiefs responded by once again moving into field goal range, but Stoyanovich, who had missed a crucial playoff attempt in the same stadium four years earlier, saw his kick drift to the left with 51 seconds left. On the ensuing drive, James Hasty was twice flagged for pass interference, the second time on 4th and 10, and Whelihan found Charlie Jones for the game-winner from a yard out with 9 seconds left.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 12
The offensive explosion was anomalous for the '98 Chargers. In no other game did they score more than 20 points, or more than two touchdowns.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 13
San Diego stayed with the 11-0 Broncos longer than expected, before falling away in the second half. In a scrappy game, where San Diego lost the turnover battle 6-4, a 13-yard Terrell Fletcher run drew the Chargers within four points late in the 1st quarter. On their next possession, San Diego reached a 2nd and 3 at the Denver 7, but Kenny Bynum fumbled away the opportunity.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 13
Despite managing to intercept John Elway on the next three Denver possessions (he only threw 10 picks all season), the Chargers didn't get that close to scoring again until the 4th quarter, when a 47-yard touchdown reception by Bryan Still was little more than a consolation. Whelihan passed for 300+ yards for the only time in his career, but was victimised by five interceptions, two of them thrown to Darrien Gordon.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 14
San Diego's lone touchdown came as a result of trickery, Terrell Fletcher passing to Freddie Jones on an HB option; Jones also caught a two-point conversion from Whelihan to tie the game at 14-14. Beyond that, they relied on the kicking of John Carney, who made four field goals from five attempts, the last of which put the Chargers up 20-17 in the final quarter. However, Trent Green threw a 20-yard touchdown to Leslie Shepherd with 1:48 to play, which stood up as the winning score after a Whelihan pass went through the hands of Freddie Jones and was intercepted.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 15
The Chargers were officially eliminated from playoff contention amidst a blizzard of turnovers. San Diego's defense made the first big play, Jamal Williams running an interception back 14 yards for a game-tying score. However, Whelihan threw interceptions on the next three drives, the first of which was run back for a touchdown, the third of which set the Seahawks up for a short scoring drive and a 21-7 lead. Terrell Fletcher's run halved the deficit shortly before halftime.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 15
The errors continued in the second half. Whelihan threw another pick, and was benched for Ryan Leaf; Leaf's first pass was intercepted. Later, Leaf was sacked on consecutive plays, the second of these causing a fumble that Cortez Kennedy ran back for a touchdown. Whelihan came back in for the next series and was intercepted for the fifth time, then Leaf returned and threw his second pick. With John Kitna of the Seahawks also throwing three interceptions, the game saw ten in total, the most for 27 years, with the seven by the Chargers being the most by one team for 12 years.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 16
This game featured considerably more offensive output than the teams' previous meeting, with the Raiders putting together back to back touchdown drives of 80 and 57 yards, en route to a 17-3 3rd quarter lead. Whelihan threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to Mikhael Ricks, but the Chargers missed numerous scoring chances, three times turning the ball over on downs in Raider territory, and once via an interception.


1998 San Diego Chargers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 17
The Chargers ended the season on a five game losing streak, beaten by a team with far more to play for. A 4-yard run by Adrian Murrell put Arizona ahead, and a record-tying four interceptions by Kwamie Lassiter kept them ahead 13-6 at the two-minute warning. However, a smissed 42-yard field goal by Chris Jacke set up a dramatic finish. Whelihan converted a 4th and 3, before San Diego faced a 4th and 20 from the Arizona 30; Whelihan then connected with Ryan Thelwell to tie the scores with just 16 seconds left. That proved to be long enough for the Cardinals, as former Charger Eric Metcalf ran the ensuing kickoff back to the Charger 44-yard line; after a quick completion moved them closer, Jacke made amends with a 52-yard kick to send his team into the playoffs.


1998 San Diego Padres season
The 1998 San Diego Padres season was the 30th season in franchise history. The Padres won the National League championship and advanced to the World Series for the second time in franchise history.


1998 San Diego Padres season
San Diego featured five All-Stars: pitchers Andy Ashby, Kevin Brown, and Trevor Hoffman, and outfielders Tony Gwynn and Greg Vaughn. Brown and Hoffman were two of the premier pitchers in baseball for 1998. Brown led the staff in wins, earned run average, and strikeouts, and he also finished in the league's top five in each category. Hoffman saved 53 games and was voted the NL Rolaids Relief Man Award for best closer in the league. Ashby was the team's number two starter with 17 wins.


1998 San Diego Padres season
The Padres offense was led by Vaughn, who had the greatest season of his career in 1998. He ended up winning both the Comeback Player of the Year Award and the Silver Slugger Award. And in a season headlined by sluggers Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, Vaughn was matching them in home runs before finishing with 50 (compared to 70 for McGwire and 66 for Sosa). Former MVP Ken Caminiti was second on the team in home runs and runs batted in. Gwynn had a .321 batting average.


1998 San Diego Padres season
In the regular season, San Diego won the NL Western Division. Their 98–64 record was third-best in the league, behind only the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros, who San Diego then went a combined 7–3 against in winning the NL pennant. But the Padres faced the 1998 New York Yankees in the World Series, and were swept, four games to none.


1998 San Diego Padres season, Player stats, Batting, Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in


1998 San Diego Padres season, Player stats, Batting, Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in


1998 San Diego Padres season, Player stats, Pitching, Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts


1998 San Diego Padres season, Player stats, Pitching, Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts


1998 San Diego Padres season, Player stats, Pitching, Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 1
October 17, 1998, at Yankee Stadium in New York City


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 1
In Game 1, Kevin Brown took the hill for the Padres and he was opposed by Yankee ace and ALCS MVP David Wells. The Yankees began the scoring in the 2nd inning, when rookie Ricky Ledée laced a 2-run double into the right field corner with the bases loaded. Wells was battered hard for the only time in the postseason beginning with the 3rd when Greg Vaughn homered to rightcenter with a man aboard tying the game up at 2 runs apiece.


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 1
In the 5th, Tony Gwynn smashed a 2-run shot off the facing of the upper deck and that was followed up immediately by Vaughn's second dinger of the night. Trailing 5–2, the Yanks made their comeback in the 7th. Jorge Posada singled and Ledee walked ending the night for Brown. It turned out to be a bad move by Padres manager Bruce Bochy. New York took advantage of the Padres bullpen with a 3-run homer by Chuck Knoblauch that tied the game at 5. Later in the inning, a 2-2 count call by home plate umpire Rich Garcia was decisive.


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 1
Mark Langston's pitch was shown on television replays to be a strike, which Rich Garcia called a ball. Tino Martinez took advantage of Garcia's call and on the next pitch sent a grand slam into the upper deck making it a 9–5 lead. The Padres score only one more run as the Yankees won game one, 9–6.


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 2
October 18, 1998, at Yankee Stadium in New York City


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 2
In Game 2, the Bombers took a big early lead, thanks to a dreadful outing by San Diego starter Andy Ashby. Bernie Williams and Jorge Posada hit home runs to assist the Yankees on offense. New York started Cuban import, Orlando Hernández, who was outstanding.


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 3
October 20, 1998, at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 3
With the Yankees up 2–0, they sent David Cone to the mound to face former Yankee pitcher, Sterling Hitchcock, the MVP of the NLCS. Both teams were kept off the scoreboard until the bottom of the 6th when Hitchcock himself led off the inning with a single off Cone. He and Qulivio Veras both scored two batters later when Tony Gwynn shot a double down the line past Tino Martinez at first base. Gwynn also scored in the inning to give San Diego a 3–0 lead.


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series, Game 3
However, a half inning later the Yanks jumped on Hitchcock for two runs beginning with a home run to left-center by Scott Brosius. The second run came in after Shane Spencer doubled and scored on an error by Ken Caminiti. In the 8th, the call was made to Trevor Hoffman after Randy Myers walked Paul O'Neill to open the inning. Hoffman then walked Tino Martinez before Scott Brosius tagged a three-run blast over the fence in dead center. With a 5–3 lead, the Yankees wrapped up the victory when Mariano Rivera picked up the save in the 9th to end it.


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series
October 21, 1998, at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California


1998 San Diego Padres season, World series
New York's Andy Pettitte outpitched San Diego's Kevin Brown with 71⁄3 strong innings for the 3-0 Yankees victory, giving the Bombers their 24th title. Though New York's reliever Jeff Nelson allowed the Padres to load the bases, Mariano Rivera came in to end the threat by getting Jim Leyritz, known for his clutch postseason homers with San Diego, to fly out. Rivera added another scoreless inning for the save.


1998 San Diego State Aztecs football team
The 1998 San Diego State Aztecs football team represented San Diego State University during the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season as a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). This was the last season for the Aztecs in the WAC, as they became a charter member of the Mountain West Conference in the 1999 season.


1998 San Diego State Aztecs football team
The team was led by head coach Ted Tollner, in his fifth year. They played home games at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego. They completed the season as co-champions of the Pacific Division of the WAC, with a record of seven wins, five losses (7–5, 7–1 WAC). The Aztecs qualified for a bowl game at the end of the 1998 season, and played the North Carolina Tar Heels in the 1998 Las Vegas Bowl in Las Vegas, Nevada.


1998 San Diego State Aztecs football team, Team players in the NFL
No SDSU players were selected in the 1999 NFL Draft.


1998 San Diego State Aztecs football team, Team players in the NFL
The following finished their college career in 1998, were not drafted, but played in the NFL.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season
The 1998 San Francisco 49ers season was the franchise's 49th season in the National Football League and their 53rd overall.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season
The season saw the return of Jerry Rice, who missed most of 1997 with a major knee injury.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season
After defeating the Green Bay Packers in the wild-card round of the playoffs, thanks to a game-winning catch by young Terrell Owens, San Francisco's season ended with a loss to the Atlanta Falcons the following week in the divisional round. The Falcons then defeated the 15–1 Minnesota Vikings in the NFC title game, but lost to the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season
The divisional-round game was Steve Young's final playoff appearance, as he suffered a concussion in Week 3 of the next season, ending his 15-year NFL career.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 1 vs. Jets
The game lead tied or changed eight times in regulation as the Jets under Bill Parcells came to Candlestick Park. Jets quarterback Glenn Foley matched Steve Young's three touchdowns and one pick with three scores and one pick of his own; Foley put up 415 yard to Young's 363 yards. The two teams traded punts in overtime; the Niners had to start at their four-yard line and coach Steve Mariucci called "90 O", a run play intended to get away from their own endzone. Garrison Hearst burst through a hole and raced 96 yards straddling the sideline, getting key blocks from Dave Fiore despite an injured leg, and from Terrell Owens for the touchdown and a 36–30 Niners win.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 2: at Washington Redskins
The Niners defeated the Redskins 45–10 with 504 yards of offense and three touchdowns by Steve Young. The Redskins coughed up the ball three times in the loss.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 4: vs. Atlanta Falcons
Hosting the 2–1 Falcons, the Niners picked off Chris Chandler three times and won 31–20 behind 387 passing yards, 50 rushing yards, and three touchdowns from Steve Young. |Weather= 62 °F (Light Rain)


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 5: at Buffalo Bills
The Niners traveled to Rich Stadium to face the Bills and crashed hard 26–21 despite 21 fourth-quarter points. The Niners committed 22 penalties eating up 178 yards (compared to Buffalo's 12 fouls for 106), while the two teams' punters Chris Mohr and Reggie Roby combined for 323 punting yards.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 6: at New Orleans Saints
Still smarting from their poor performance at Buffalo, the Niners traveled to the Superdome and crushed Mike Ditka's Saints 31–0. The game was another penalty-laden affair with a combined 24 fouls eating up 240 yards. The Niners shut down Danny Wuerffel and Billy Joe Tolliver, limiting them to 15 completions for 174 yards and a pick.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs Indianapolis Colts
The Niners hosted the Colts and their new quarterback Peyton Manning. The Colts immediately served notice for the future as they raced to a 21–0 lead behind two Manning scores to Marvin Harrison and a 65-yard score from future Ram Marshall Faulk; Manning would add another touchdown to Harrison in the third quarter and the Colts added a field goal following a Garrison Hearst fumble and subsequent personal foul penalty.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs Indianapolis Colts
The Niners clawed back as Steve Young threw three touchdowns and ran in a fourth; a botched PAT by Ty Detmer and resultant smothered two-point attempt led on the Niners' next possession to a Jerry Rice two-point conversion catch from Young to tie the game.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs Indianapolis Colts
Mike Vanderjagt missed from 53 yards out on the Colts' next possession with 1:10 to go, then after a crushing pass interference penalty on Tyrone Poole against J.J. Stokes with 43 seconds to go (this following two Young interceptions erased on Indianapolis holding penalties in the first half) Wade Richey's 24-yard field goal won it 34–31 for the Niners.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 7: vs Indianapolis Colts
The game became notable in league history for the showdown between veteran Young (331 passing yards, 60 rushing yards nearly matching Garrison Hearst at 65, and four total touchdowns) and rookie phenomenon Manning (231 passing yards and three scores); the game featured seven Hall of Famers in Young, Manning, Jerry Rice, Marvin Harrison, Marshall Faulk, Terrell Owens, and Chris Doleman. |Weather= 68 °F (Sunny)


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 8: at St. Louis Rams
Hitting the TWA Dome, the Niners cruised to a 28–10 win over the Rams as Steve Young overcame two picks with three touchdowns and budding superstar Terrell Owens ran in a 21-yard score. The Niners picked off Tony Banks three times.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 9: at Green Bay Packers
For the fifth straight time the Niners fell to the Green Bay Packers, this time 36–22 at Lambeau Field. The Niners overcame a botched punt snap for a safety and erased a 16–0 Packer lead to take the lead 22–19 in the third quarter. From there, despite three Brett Favre interceptions, it all fell apart for the Niners as the Packers unleashed 17 unanswered points.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 10: vs. Carolina Panthers
Ty Detmer took over for Steve Young against the 1–7 Panthers, throwing for 276 yards and three touchdowns (to J.J. Stokes and Terrell Owens), but three interceptions kept the Panthers in the game and they took a 23–22 lead before Wade Richey's 46-yard field goal capped a 25–23 Niners win. |Weather= 57 °F (Cloudy)


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 11: at Atlanta Falcons
The battle for the NFC West had now become a true battle as the 7–2 Falcons hosted the 7–2 Niners and things got ugly for San Francisco. Steve Young managed 342 passing yards but only 21 completions; the Falcons grabbed a fumble at the Niners goalline for a Jessie Tuggle touchdown and when Young connected on long-range scores to Terrell Owens and Jerry Rice, Chris Chandler put the game away on his 78-yard strike to Terance Mathis. The 31–19 Falcons win marked the end of the Niners' hold on the division crown that season.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 12: vs. New Orleans Saints
Steve Young outdueled ex-Panther Kerry Collins despite a Collins rushing score that put the 5–6 Saints up 10–0 in the first quarter. The Niners outscored the Saints 31–10 in the second and third quarters on four Young touchdown throws. Collins was picked twice and failed on fourth and goal at the Niners' 1-yard line in the fourth quarter; an Aaron Craver rushing score in the final two minutes put the Saints within eleven points at the end.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 13: vs. New York Giants
A Gary Brown rushing score in the opening six minutes of the first quarter was the only time the Giants were in contention as Steve Young answered with a 79-yard touchdown to Terrell Owens. Young scored again at the end of the second quarter and Terry Kirby and Garrison Hearst ran in the ball for additional scores and 31–7 Niners win.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 16: at New England Patriots
Following four straight wins the Niners traveled to Foxboro Stadium to face a struggling Patriots squad. Regular starter Drew Bledsoe was out for the year with a broken throwing hand so backup Scott Zolak took over.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 16: at New England Patriots
Despite a blocked field goal attempt the Niners scored 21 second-quarter points (including a touchdown from backup Ty Detmer on a fake field goal attempt), but the Patriots battled back and tied the game on a Robert Edwards four-yard score, then won it on a drive in the final 1:48 on four straight Edwards rushes and then on Adam Vinatieri's 35-yard field goal with eighteen seconds left. Terrell Owens was held to three catches for 61 yards; in the second quarter the two teams exchanged interceptions as a pass for Owens was intercepted by Ty Law but three plays later a Zolak pass to Ben Coates was intercepted by Tim McDonald.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Regular season, Game summaries, Week 17 vs. St. Louis Rams
Former Niner Steve Bono put the Rams, winless against the Niners since 1990, up 7–0 on a touchdown to Ricky Proehl. Proehl would catch another touchdown but by then the game was out of reach on two Steve Young touchdowns and scores from R. W. McQuarters and three Wade Richey field goals. A former Arena Football quarterback entered for the Rams late as Kurt Warner completed four of eleven passes for 39 yards.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Playoffs, NFC Wild Card vs Green Bay Packers
For the first time in the Brett Favre era, the 49ers pulled off a victory over the Packers. After a late Packers touchdown, the Niners trailed 27–23 and a continuing issue during the game was dropped passes by receiver Terrell Owens. In the final ten seconds, Steve Young dropped back in the Packers' redzone, stumbled but stayed on his feet, then heaved the ball to the endzone where Owens caught it and landed in the endzone with four seconds left, holding on to the ball despite hits by two Packers defensive backs.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Playoffs, NFC Wild Card vs Green Bay Packers
The Niners had pulled out one of the most dramatic wins in their history. This play is often referred to by 49ers fans as "the Catch II", a reference to "The Catch" touchdown from Joe Montana to Dwight Clark in the final minute against the Cowboys in the 1981 playoffs. The victory over the Packers turned out to be Young's final playoff win.


1998 San Francisco 49ers season, Playoffs, NFC Divisional Playoff at Atlanta Falcons
The game started poorly for the 13–4 49ers, who lost 1,500-yard rusher Garrison Hearst to a broken bone in his left leg on the first play of the game. Backup Terry Kirby was only able to rush for 46 yards. With their running game hobbled, the 49ers trailed 14–0 in the first half, and 20–10 going into the fourth quarter. With 2:57 remaining, Young scored on an 8-yard run and the team converted a two-point conversion after a botched snap, to bring the score to 20–18. The 49ers had one more chance to win with the ball deep in their own territory but Young threw a desperation pass that was picked off by the Falcons' William White.


1998 San Francisco Board of Supervisors election
The 1998 San Francisco Board of Supervisors elections occurred on November 3, 1998. Five of the eleven seats were contested. Five incumbents, two of which were appointed by Mayor Willie Brown, were up for election.


1998 San Francisco Board of Supervisors election
This election was the last using at-large seats, a system that effectively reduces representation of minority points of view. Subsequent Board of Supervisors elections were to district seats through a plan ratified by the voters in 1996.


1998 San Francisco Board of Supervisors election
Municipal elections in California are officially non-partisan, though most candidates in San Francisco do receive funding and support from various political parties.


1998 San Francisco Board of Supervisors election, Results
Each voter is allowed to cast at most five votes.


1998 San Francisco Giants season
The 1998 San Francisco Giants season was the Giants' 116th season in Major League Baseball, their 41st season in San Francisco since their move from New York following the 1957 season, and their 39th at 3Com Park at Candlestick Point. The team finished in second place in the National League West with an 89-74 record, 9½  games behind the San Diego Padres.


1998 San Francisco Giants season, Player stats, Batting, Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in


1998 San Francisco Giants season, Player stats, Batting, Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in


1998 San Jose Clash season
The 1998 San Jose Clash season was the third season of the team's existence.


1998 San Jose Clash season, About
The 1998 season was one of excitement tempered by frustration. Quinn led the team to a 13-19 record, good for 33 points in MLS. San Jose was forced to play the first three home games of the season at Stanford University after winter rains delayed the renovation on Spartan Stadium. When the club returned to Spartan, they faced the New England Revolution May 3, 1998 on a newly widened field that was 70 yards wide and 110 yards long.


1998 San Jose Clash season, About
Ronald Cerritos again led the team, putting in 13 goals to finish the season as the eighth leading goal-scorer in the league. During the 1998 season the pieces of the eventual 2001 MLS Cup Champions began to form at Spartan Stadium. San Jose drafted eventual 2002 MLS all-star Wade Barrett was drafted in the first round of the 1998 College Draft, along with Alberto Montoya and Caleb Porter. Ben Parry was the 3rd overall selection in the 1998 College Draft but was forced into an early retirement with a rare stomach virus.


1998 San Jose Clash season, About
San Jose picked up Francisco Uribe, Harut Karapetyan, and Brian Sebapole hoping to boost the Clash offense that already had Eddie Lewis, Jeff Baicher, Ronald Cerritos and Eric Wynalda, but failed to help lead the team to the playoffs. Karapetyan would return in 2000. Troy Dayak was shelved most of the season with a herniated disc in his neck and would be forced into retirement until 2001.


1998 San Jose Clash season, About
Joe Cannon was called to the club from the A-League to serve as a backup for ten days before returning to soccer's minor leagues, he played the final 45 minutes against Toluca yielding 1 goal in an exhibition. Defender Richard Gough enjoyed an all-star season in 1998, as he was the only member of the team selected to play in the mid-season classic. The club was forced to play through May and June without forward Eric Wynalda, who was with the United States National Team at the World Cup in France.


1998 San Jose Clash season, About
Wynalda appeared in two matches for the U.S. during the World Cup. John Doyle continued to be a dominant defender and captained the squad in 1998. Caleb Porter had to miss the entire 1998 season with a knee injury but would return for 1999. He eventually went on to lead the Portland Timbers to an MLS Cup Championship.


1998 San Jose Clash season, Squad, Current squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


1998 San Jose State Spartans football team
The 1998 San Jose State Spartans football team represented San Jose State University during the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season as a member of the Western Athletic Conference. The team was led by head coach Dave Baldwin, in his second year as head coach at San Jose State. They played home games at Spartan Stadium in San Jose, California. The Spartans finished the 1998 season with a record of four wins and eight losses (4–8, 3–5 WAC).


1998 San Jose State Spartans football team, Team players in the NFL
The following finished their college career in 1998, were not drafted, but played in the NFL.


1998 San Jose mayoral election
The 1998 San Jose mayoral election was held on June 2 and November 3, 1998 to elect the Mayor of San Jose, California. It saw the election of Ron Gonzales.


1998 San Jose mayoral election
Because no candidate managed to receive a majority of the vote in the initial round of the election, a runoff election was held between the first round's top-two finishers.


1998 San Marino Grand Prix
The 1998 San Marino Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Imola on 26 April 1998. The 62-lap race was the fourth round of the 1998 FIA Formula One World Championship and was won by David Coulthard driving a McLaren-Mercedes.


1998 San Marino Grand Prix, Race summary
It was back to business for McLaren in qualifying, with Coulthard outpacing Häkkinen for pole, and Ferrari's Schumacher and Eddie Irvine keeping things neat by qualifying third and fourth. However, the men in red had hoped for better, and had followed Tyrrell's lead in fitting 'side-wings' - x-shaped wings bolted atop the sideboards.


1998 San Marino Grand Prix, Race summary
But these appendages did not produce enough of a gain to topple the McLarens and, with Jordan, Sauber and Prost also sprouting these peculiar side-wings the sport's governing body voted to ban them the day after the race, as they felt that they would be unsafe if a driver suffered a side-on impact.


1998 San Marino Grand Prix, Race summary
The race was simplicity itself for Coulthard as he controlled proceedings ahead of Mika Häkkinen, with Schumacher split from Irvine by Jacques Villeneuve's Williams. But on lap 17 Häkkinen retired to the pits, and the garage door was immediately rolled down to conceal his problem. It later proved to be a gearbox failure.


1998 San Marino Grand Prix, Race summary
Unaware of his teammate's problem, Coulthard motored on ahead of Schumacher until the German emerged from his second stop and started to fly, eating into the Scot's 20-second advantage at a rate of a second per lap. Debris in a sidepod had sent Coulthard's oil cooler temperature soaring, and team boss Ron Dennis kept sprinting from the pit wall to the McLaren garage to check on the telemetry, so that Coulthard could be instructed how much he could afford to ease off to save his engine. Therefore, the Scot could every so often match Schumacher's pace, and he duly recorded the win. Irvine sent the Ferrari fans home happy by taking the final podium place, with the Williams duo of Villeneuve and Frentzen the only other unlapped runners.


1998 San Miguel Beermen season
The 1998 San Miguel Beermen season was the 24th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).


1998 San Miguel Beermen season, Notable dates
February 1: San Miguel Beermen got excellent debuts from its two rookies Danny Ildefonso and Steve Smith as the Beermen pulled away with an 86-67 rout of Pop Cola at the start of the All-Filipino Cup.


1998 San Miguel Beermen season, Notable dates
April 14: San Miguel booked the first finals seat in the All-Filipino Cup with their 14th win against six losses, defeating Pop Cola, 89-69.


1998 San Miguel Beermen season, Summary
After two seasons of non-finals appearance, the San Miguel Beermen return to the championship series twice in the season but could only end up with a runner-up finishes. The Beermen placed second behind Alaska Milkmen in the eliminations of the All-Filipino Cup with seven wins and four losses. They won eight games in the semifinals for a league-best 15-6 won-loss record. The Beermen played the Alaska Milkmen in the best-of-seven championship.


1998 San Miguel Beermen season, Summary
In the battle between two American coaches, Ron Jacobs and Alaska's Tim Cone, the Beermen blew a 3-2 series advantage, they lost Game six by a big margin and in the deciding seventh game on May 8, the San Miguel Beermen folded up to the pressure as the game reaches its climax, losing by nine points to Alaska Milkmen, 63-72, before a jampacked crowd at the Araneta Coliseum.


1998 San Miguel Beermen season, Summary
In the Commissioner's Cup, the Beermen bring back last year's best import Jeff Ward, who was good for only six games when coach Ron Jacobs gambled on a smaller import in the returning Lamont Strothers. The Beermen scored a 3-0 sweep over Pop Cola in the best-of-five semifinal series and went on to play the Alaska Milkmen in a championship rematch.


1998 San Miguel Beermen season, Summary
The Milkmen paraded a taller import Devin Davis and they jump off to a 2-0 series lead in the best-of-seven finals, the Beermen were able to tie the series at two games apiece by winning Games three and four, but Alaska came back with a victory in Game five and finish off the Beermen in six games.


1998 San Miguel Beermen season, Summary
Lamont Strothers teamed up with last year's Governors Cup best import Larry Robinson in the last two conferences of the season. The Beermen's bid for a third straight finals appearance was halted by Formula Shell, which beat the Beermen, 87-83, in one of the two knockout matches for a finals berth on November 22.


1998 Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council election
The 1998 Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 7 May 1998 to elect members of Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council in the West Midlands, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Labour party stayed in overall control of the council.


1998 Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council election, Campaign
Before the election Labour held 60 of the 72 seats, with the main opposition provided by the Liberal Democrats. 24 seats were contested in the election, including 20 Labour, 3 Liberal Democrat and 1 Conservative seats. These included the Liberal Democrat group leader, Sadie Smith, in Great Barr and the Conservative group leader, Bill Archer, in Wednesbury North.


1998 Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council election, Election result
The results saw no changes in party control, meaning that Labour continued to run the council.


1998 Saskatchewan Roughriders season
The Saskatchewan Roughriders finished in 4th place in the West Division 1998 CFL season with a 5–13 record and missed the playoffs, failing to return to the Grey Cup game.


1998 Saskatchewan Scott Tournament of Hearts
The 1998 Saskatchewan Scott Tournament of Hearts women's provincial curling championship, was held January 21–25 at the Rosetown Sports Centre in Rosetown, Saskatchewan. The winning team of Cathy Trowell, represented Saskatchewan at the 1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts in Regina, Saskatchewan, where the team finished round robin with a 6-5 record, missing the playoffs after losing a tiebreaker to British Columbia's Sue Garvey.


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup
The 1998 Crown Prince Cup was the 23rd season of the Saudi premier football knockout tournament since its establishment in 1957. The main competition started on 31 January and concluded with the final on 11 March 1998.


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup
Al-Ittihad were the defending champions; however, they were eliminated in the Round of 16 by Al-Shabab.


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup
In the final, Al-Ahli defeated Al-Riyadh 3–2 with a golden goal during extra time to secure their third title and first since 1970. The final was held at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh. As winners of the tournament, Al-Ahli qualified for the 1999–2000 Asian Cup Winners' Cup. As runners-up, Al-Riyadh qualified for the 1999 Arab Cup Winners' Cup.


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup, Qualifying rounds
All of the competing teams that are not members of the Premier League competed in the qualifying rounds to secure one of 4 available places in the Round of 16. First Division sides Al-Raed and Hajer and Second Division sides Al-Akhdoud and Al-Orobah qualified.


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup, Round of 16
The draw for the Round of 16 was held on 10 January 1998. The Round of 16 fixtures were played on 31 January and 15, 16, 17, 21 and 25 February 1998. All times are local, AST (UTC+3). Al-Hilal's match was moved to 31 January due to their participation in the 1998 Gulf Club Champions Cup. Al-Shoulla's match was delayed to 20 February due to their postponed league match against Al-Nassr being played on 15 February. Al-Nassr's match was delayed to 25 February due to their participation in the quarter-finals of the 1997–98 Asian Cup Winners' Cup.


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup, Quarter-finals
The draw for the Quarter-finals was held on 19 February 1998. The Quarter-finals fixtures were played on 26 & 27 February and 1 & 3 March 1998. All times are local, AST (UTC+3). Al-Hilal's match was delayed to 3 March due to their participation in the quarter-finals of the 1997–98 Asian Club Championship.


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup, Semi-finals
The draw for the Semi-finals was held on 1 March 1998. The Semi-finals fixtures were played on 5 & 6 March 1998. All times are local, AST (UTC+3).


1998 Saudi Crown Prince Cup, Final
The 1998 Crown Prince Cup Final was played on 11 March 1998 at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh between Al-Ahli and Al-Riyadh. This was the third Crown Prince Cup final to be held at the stadium. This was Al-Ahli's fifth final and Al-Riyadh's third final. This was a repeat of the 1978 King Cup final. All times are local, AST (UTC+3).


1998 Saxony-Anhalt state election
The 1998 Saxony-Anhalt state election was held on 26 April 1998 to elect the members of the 3rd Landtag of Saxony-Anhalt. The incumbent government was a minority coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and The Greens led by Minister-President Reinhard Höppner, supported by the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS). The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) suffered major losses, mostly to the national conservative German People's Union (DVU). The Greens fell out of the Landtag. After the election, the SPD formed a new minority government alone with the support of the PDS, and Höppner continued in office.


1998 Saxony-Anhalt state election, Parties
The table below lists parties represented in the 2nd Landtag of Saxony-Anhalt.


1998 Scheldeprijs
The 1998 Scheldeprijs was the 85th edition of the Scheldeprijs cycle race and was held on 22 April 1998. The race was won by Servais Knaven of the TVM team.


1998 Scotland rugby union tour of Oceania
The 1998 Scotland rugby union tour of Fiji and Australia was a series of matches played in May–June 1998 in Fiji and Australia by Scotland national rugby union team. The Scottish team lost all the test matches.


1998 Scotland rugby union tour of Oceania
In the first match of the tour, Fiji claimed their first victory against a Five Nations side.


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts
The 1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts Canadian women's national curling championship, was played February 21 to March 1 at the Agridome in Regina, Saskatchewan. The home province of Saskatchewan would be represented by two teams, as the Sandra Schmirler rink was the defending champions team Canada. It would be the final Tournament of Hearts Sandra Schmirler would play in before her death in 2000.


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts
The event set a record attendance of 154,688, which still holds today.


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Sandra SchmirlerThird: Jan BetkerSecond: Joan McCuskerLead: Marcia GudereitAlternate: Atina Ford


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Cathy BorstThird: Heather GodbersonSecond: Brenda BohmerLead: Kate HorneAlternate: Rona McGregor


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Sue GarveyThird: Jan WiltzenSecond: Allison MacInnesLead: Val LahucikAlternate: Lindsay Kosteniuk


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Lois FowlerThird: Betty CoulingSecond: Sharon FowlerLead: Jocelyn BeeverAlternate: Maureen Bonar


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Kathy FloydThird: June CampbellSecond: Allison FraneyLead: Jane ArseneauAlternate: Mary Harding


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Heather Strong Third: Kelli SharpeSecond: Michele RenoufLead: Karen ThomasAlternate: Peg Goss


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Mary MattatallThird: Angie BryantSecond: Lisa MacLeodLead: Heather HopkinsAlternate: Hayley Clarke


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Anne MerklingerThird: Theresa BreenSecond: Patti McKnightLead: Audrey FreyAlternate: Christine McCrady


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Tammi LowtherThird: Susan McInnisSecond: Shelley MuzikaLead: Julie ScalesAlternate: Donna Lank


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Marie-Claude CarlosThird: Nathalie GagnonSecond: Julie BlackburnLead: Sylvie FortinAlternate: Maude Martel


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Cathy TrowellThird: Kristy LewisSecond: Karen DakuLead: Keri-Lynn SchikowskiAlternate: Nancy Inglis


1998 Scott Tournament of Hearts, Teams
Skip : Kelly KayloThird: Dawn MosesSecond: Sharon CormierLead: Cheryl BurlingtonAlternate: Kerry Koe


1998 Scottish Claymores season
The 1998 Scottish Claymores season was the fourth year of competition for the franchise in the NFL Europe League (NFLEL). The team was led by head coach Jim Criner in his fourth year, and played its home games at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh (four) and Hampden Park in Glasgow, Scotland (one). They finished the regular season in sixth place with a record of two wins and eight losses.


1998 Scottish Conservative Party leadership election
The 1998 Scottish Conservative Party leadership election was an internal party election for a new leader of the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party. The previous year the party had lost all of its MPs in the 1997 general election. Two individuals put themselves forward; Former Scottish Conservative President David McLetchie, and former Ayr MP Phil Gallie. McLetchie won the election with 52.3% of votes cast. The Leader was elected via a secret ballot at a meeting of senior party officials, including Conservative candidates for the Scottish parliament, constituency chairs, area officers and the party’s Scottish executive.


1998 Scottish Cup Final
The 1998 Scottish Cup Final was played on 16 May 1998 at Celtic Park in Glasgow and was the final of the 113th Scottish Cup. Heart of Midlothian and Rangers contested the match which Hearts won 2–1, thanks to Colin Cameron's early penalty and Stephane Adam's goal.


1998 Scottish Cup Final
The match was also notable as Ally McCoist's last game for Rangers; he went on to score their goal after coming on as a substitute.


1998 Scottish Cup Final
It was the end of an era for one of the Glasgow club's most successful squads, who had won a record-equalling nine consecutive league titles but finished the 1997–98 season empty-handed, losing the cup final a week after their run of championships was ended by arch-rivals Celtic; in addition to McCoist, it was the last Rangers appearance for a number of their older players including Goram, McCall, Durrant, Gough and Laudrup and the manager Walter Smith, although several would return to the club in another capacity in the years to follow.


1998 Scottish Cup Final
There was an element of revenge for Hearts in the victory, as they had recently lost to Rangers in both the 1996 Scottish Cup Final and the 1996 Scottish League Cup Final. John Robertson was an unused substitute in the match, which was his last involvement as a player with the club.


1998 Scottish League Cup Final
The 1998 Scottish League Cup Final was played on 29 November 1998 at Celtic Park in Glasgow and was the final of the 52nd Scottish League Cup. The final was contested by Rangers and St Johnstone. Rangers won the match 2–1, with goals from Stéphane Guivarc'h and Jörg Albertz.


1998 Scottish Masters
The 1998 Regal Scottish Masters was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place between 29 September and 4 October 1998 at the Motherwell Civic Centre in Motherwell, Scotland.


1998 Scottish Masters, Prize Fund
The breakdown of prize money for this year is shown below:


1998 Scottish Masters, Preliminary qualifying
The preliminary qualifying rounds for the tournament were for four highest-ranked Scottish players who were not invited to the main event and took place on 9 September 1998 at the Spencer's Snooker Centre in Stirling. Jamie Burnett won the four-man playoff and earned the final spot for the main qualifying event. All matches were played to the best-of-nine frames and players in bold indicate match winners.


1998 Scottish Open (snooker)
The 1998 Regal Scottish Open was a professional ranking snooker tournament, that was held in February 1998 at the AECC, Aberdeen, Scotland.


1998 Scottish Open (snooker)
Ronnie O'Sullivan won the tournament by defeating John Higgins nine frames to five in the final. The defending champion, Stephen Hendry, was defeated in the last 16 by Marcus Campbell.


1998 Seattle Mariners season
The Seattle Mariners 1998 season was their 22nd season, and was the final year in which Kingdome was the home venue for the entire season. Their record was 76–85 (.472) and they finished in third place in the four-team American League West, 11½ games behind the champion Texas Rangers.


1998 Seattle Mariners season
The Mariners were the defending division champions, but exceeded the .500 mark only once during the season; at 19–18 after a win at Detroit on May 12. On July 18 at the Kingdome, Seattle (crimson, silver, and black) and the Kansas City Royals (yellow gold and blue) played a game in futuristic uniforms for "Turn Ahead the Clock" night. Shortstop Alex Rodriguez hit a three-run homer in the seventh inning and the Mariners won by three.


1998 Seattle Mariners season
Ken Griffey Jr. hit 56 home runs to tie his franchise record set the year before; Rodriguez hit 42 home runs and stole 46 bases to become the third member of the 40/40 club, joining Jose Canseco (1988) and Barry Bonds (1996).


1998 Seattle Mariners season, Player stats, Batting, Starters by position
Note: G = Games played; AB = At Bats; H = Hits; R = Runs; HR = Home Runs; RBI = Runs Batted In; Avg. = Batting Average; Slg. = Slugging Average; SB = Stolen Bases


1998 Seattle Seahawks season
The 1998 Seattle Seahawks season was the franchise's 23rd season in the National Football League, the 23rd playing their home games at the Kingdome, and the fourth and final under head coach head coach Dennis Erickson. They matched  their 8–8 record from 1997, but a late-season loss to the New York Jets came due to a controversial call when Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde ran in a touchdown but was downed short of the goalline yet the play was ruled a touchdown; the loss helped knock Seattle out of the playoffs for the tenth consecutive season.


1998 Seattle Seahawks season, Schedule, Regular season
Divisional matchups have the AFC West playing the NFC East.


1998 Seattle Seahawks season, Game summaries, Regular season, Week 14: at New York Jets
Vinny Testaverde's controversial touchdown on fourth down from the five-yard line with 20 seconds remaining gave the Jets the victory. Replays showed that Testaverde's helmet crossed the goal line, but not the ball. This play is widely attributed as being responsible for bringing back instant replay to the NFL in 1999.


1998 Seattle Seahawks season, Awards and records
The 1998 Seahawks hold the record for most defensive touchdowns in a season, with 10 (as of the 2007 NFL Season). In 2012 the Chicago Bears tied the record.


1998 Sebring Classic
The 1998 NAPA Auto Parts Sebring Classic presented by Royal Purple Motor Oil was the sixth round of the 1998 IMSA GT Championship season. It took place on September 20, 1998.


1998 Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council election
Elections to Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council, England were held on 7 May 1998. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control.


1998 Segunda División B play-offs
The 1998 Segunda División B play-offs (Playoffs de Ascenso or Promoción de Ascenso) were the final playoffs for promotion from 1997–98 Segunda División B to the 1998–99 Segunda División. The four first placed teams in each of the four Segunda División B groups played the Playoffs de Ascenso and the four last placed teams in Segunda División were relegated to Segunda División B.


1998 Segunda División B play-offs
The teams play a league of four teams, divided into 4 groups. The champion of each group is promoted to Segunda División.


1998 Senegalese parliamentary election
Parliamentary elections were held in Senegal on 24 May 1998. The result was a victory for the ruling Socialist Party, which won 93 of the 140 seats. Voter turnout was just 39.3%.


1998 Senior League World Series
The 1998 Senior League World Series took place from August 16–22 in Kissimmee, Florida, United States. Diamond Bar, California defeated host Conway, Florida in the championship game.


1998 Senior PGA Tour
The 1998 Senior PGA Tour was the 19th season since the Senior PGA Tour officially began in 1980 (it was renamed the Champions Tour in 2003 and PGA Tour Champions in 2016). The season consisted of 38 official money events with purses totalling $45,850,650, including four majors. Hale Irwin won the most tournaments, seven. The tournament results, leaders, and award winners are listed below.


1998 Senior PGA Tour, Tournament results
The following table shows all the official money events for the 1998 season. "Date" is the ending date of the tournament. The numbers in parentheses after the winners' names are the number of wins they had on the tour up to and including that event. Senior majors are shown in bold.


1998 Serbian foreign mediation in Kosovo referendum
A referendum on foreign mediation in Kosovo was held in the Republic of Serbia on 23 April 1998. Voters were asked "Do you approve the participation of foreign representatives in solving the problems in Kosovo and Metohija?" The proposal was rejected by 96.53% of voters. The referendum was boycotted by Kosovan Albanians.


1998 Serbian foreign mediation in Kosovo referendum, Background
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević proposed the referendum on 2 April, but required a change to the law mandating that referendums can only be held 30 days after their announcement in order to have it held before the ultimatum of the Great Powers to make a decision by 25 April. On 6 April the National Assembly passed a law reducing the time limit to 15 days, with the vote of 205 in favour and nine against. The referendum was then approved the following day by a vote of 193 to four.


1998 Seychellois general election
General elections were held in the Seychelles between 20 and 22 March 1998. Incumbent President France-Albert René and his Seychelles People's Progressive Front won both elections with over 60% of the vote, defeating a divided opposition.


1998 Seychellois general election, Campaign
On the 4 February 1998 it was announced that the presidential and parliamentary elections would be held at the same time in March. President René and his ruling Seychelles People's Progressive Front were expected to easily win the elections. René enjoyed strong support for introducing a social welfare system and benefited from the inability of the opposition to unite against him. He was challenged by the former President James Mancham of the Seychelles Democratic Party, who he had deposed in a coup in 1977, and also by Wavel Ramkalawan of the new United Opposition party.


1998 Seychellois general election, Campaign
The election saw a joint team of international election monitors from the Commonwealth of Nations and Francophonie observe the election, the first time they had sent a combined team to observe an election. The team was led by Sir John Compton, former Prime Minister of Saint Lucia. The monitors said the election was mainly free and fair, and complemented it on being well organised. However, there were some complaints about vote buying by government officials.


1998 Seychellois general election, Results, President
President René won the presidential election with two-thirds of the vote, while former President Mancham was beaten into third place by Wavel Ramkalawan.


1998 Seychellois general election, Results, Parliament
The parliamentary results saw the governing Seychelles People's Progressive Front win 24 of the 25 directly elected seats and a further 6 of the 9 seats that were elected proportionally. The opposition Democratic Party was reduced to only one seat, while the new United Opposition won three seats.


1998 Shanghai Open
The 1998 Shanghai Open was a men's tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts in Shanghai, China that was part of the International Series of the 1998 ATP Tour. It was the third edition of the tournament and was held from 5 October until 12 October 1998. Second-seeded Michael Chang won the singles title.


1998 Shanghai Open, Finals, Doubles
Mahesh Bhupathi /  Leander Paes defeated  Todd Woodbridge /  Mark Woodforde, 6–4, 6–7, 7–6


1998 Shanghai Open – Doubles
The 1998 Shanghai Open was a men's tennis tournament played on Indoor Carpet in Shanghai, China that was part of the International Series of the 1998 ATP Tour. It was the third edition of the tournament and was held from 5 October – 12 October.


1998 Shanghai Open – Doubles, Seeds
Champion seeds are indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which those seeds were eliminated.


1998 Shanghai Open – Singles
The 1998 Shanghai Open was a men's tennis tournament played on Indoor Carpet in Shanghai, China that was part of the International Series of the 1998 ATP Tour. It was the third edition of the tournament and was held from 5 October – 12 October.


1998 Shanghai Open – Singles, Seeds
Champion seeds are indicated in bold text while text in italics indicates the round in which those seeds were eliminated.


1998 Sheffield City Council election
Elections to Sheffield City Council were held on 7 May 1998. One third of the council was up for election, and the Labour Party kept overall control of the council.


1998 Sheffield City Council election, Election result
This result has the following consequences for the total number of seats on the Council after the elections:


1998 Shenyang trolleybus electrocution accident
The Shenyang trolleybus electrocution accident happened at 15:50 on 12 August,1998, when a trolley pole fell off the trolley wires and connected onto a 11kV high-voltage cable, resulting in 5 deaths and 9 injuries. This accident had a devastating consequence to trolleybus operation in Shenyang, ultimately resulting in the complete removal of the trolleybus network in Shenyang.


1998 Shenyang trolleybus electrocution accident, Background
Prior to the closure of the trolleybus network in Shenyang, it was the third largest trolleybus network in China, although in 1995 it was the largest by kilometre count of trolley wires, but second behind Shanghai in total vehicle count. In May 1999, after a number of reductions, there was a total of 12 lines, 4 depots and more than 400 trolleybuses. At its peak, there were about 20 routes.