2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Penn State
On the first play of the 4th quarter, Orton (and Purdue) committed their first turnover of the season with a Calvin Lowry interception. But PSU came up empty when Zack Mills was tackled short of the first down on a fake FG attempt. After a second Orton interception resulted in a missed PSU field goal, Purdue  embarked on a gritty, time-consuming drive that ended with a long Ben Jones FG to regain a 7-point lead with less than 3 minutes left. The drive was kept alive with a terrific individual effort by freshman WR Dorien Bryant on a 3rd and long play.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Penn State
Rodney Kinlaw gave the Lions a great opportunity to tie on the ensuing kickoff with a 64-yard return, but Mills and the PSU offense came up empty with 4 incomplete passes. Finally, on the last play, QB Anthony Morelli's desperation pass also fell incomplete.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Penn State
In what became the prevailing 2004 theme for PSU, their defense did a commendable job vs. the high-powered Purdue offense by limiting it to 348 yards and sacking Orton 3 times. The young Purdue defense held up well against the run by limiting PSU to 18 yards on 17 carries, and put a good pass-rush on Mills by sacking him 3 times.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Penn State
In addition to catching his 11th TD pass of the season, Taylor Stubblefield set the Big Ten record for catches, surpassing former teammate John Standeford.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Wisconsin
In a wild game between two ranked opponents in West Lafayette, the Badgers handed #5 Purdue its first loss of the season. In the 4th Quarter Boilermaker QB Kyle Orton fumbled the ball and Badger DB Scott Starks returned the fumble for the go-ahead score. Within Purdue football fandom, this play is sometimes referred to as "The Fumble". With the crushing loss, Purdue fell to 5–1 on the season.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Michigan
The 2-point loss to Michigan at home was the 2nd in a row for the Boilermakers.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Northwestern
Purdue fell to 5–3 on the season with a 3rd consecutive loss.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Iowa
With the loss, their fourth in a row, the Boilermakers fell to 5–4 on the season.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Ohio State
Purdue snapped their losing streak to the Buckeyes and their overall 4-game losing streak with a 24–17 win in West Lafayette, improving to 6–4 on the year. The Purdue win made it impossible for the Buckeyes to finish with a winning conference record in 2004.


2004 Purdue Boilermakers football team, Game summaries, Indiana
With the win (in the highest scoring game in series history), the Boilermakers finished 4–4 in Big Ten conference play. Purdue extended their home winning streak over the Hoosiers to 4 games (their last loss to the Hoosiers in Ross–Ade Stadium coming in the 1996 season). Joe Tiller and the Boilermakers finished the regular season with a 7–4 record.


2004 Qamishli riots
The 2004 Qamishli riots were an uprising by Syrian Kurds in the northeastern city of Qamishli in March 2004. The riots started during a chaotic football match, when some Arab fans of the guest team started raising pictures of Saddam Hussein, an action that angered the Kurdish fans of the host team, because of Hussein's Anfal campaign against Iraqi Kurds. Both groups began throwing stones at each other. The Ba'ath Party local office was burned down by Kurdish demonstrators, leading to the security forces reacting.


2004 Qamishli riots
The Syrian army responded quickly, deploying troops backed by tanks and helicopters, and launching a crack-down. Events climaxed when Kurds in Qamishli toppled a statue of Hafez al-Assad. At least 30 Kurds were killed as the security services re-asserted control over the city. As a result of the crackdown, thousands of Syrian Kurds fled to Iraqi Kurdistan.


2004 Qamishli riots, Background
Qamishli is the largest town in Al-Hasakah Governorate and is located in northeast Syria. It is regarded as the Kurdish and Assyrian community capital. It is also the center of the Syrian Kurdish struggle, especially in the recent years.


2004 Qamishli riots, Background
The Kurds also felt opposition from the Syrian government in 1962, forty years before, when the government took census and left out of it many Kurds. This left them and their children without citizenship and the right to obtain government jobs or to have property. This disregarded minority now consists of hundreds of thousands of Kurds, who carry identification cards as "foreigner". Another move the government made which has fueled tensions was resettling Arabs from other parts of the country into along the border in Iran, Iraq and Turkey. They did this in order to build a buffer between Kurdish areas, which has furthered the hatred between the Kurds and Arabs.


2004 Qamishli riots, Background
The United States has for a longer period of time recognized Iraqi Kurdistan diplomatically which has led the Americans to invite the current Kurdish leader of Iraqi Kurdistan, Masoud Barzani, to the White House and a meeting in Baghdad when the American president was in town. The visit from United States Vice President, Joe Biden, to the fourth largest city in Iraq, Erbil, also known as the Iraqi Kurdistan capital, helped strengthen their alliance with them.


2004 Qamishli riots, Background
The United States started Operation Provide Comfort and Operation Provide Comfort II in an attempt to defend Kurds fleeing their homes in Northern Iraq as a result of the Iraqi Gulf War. Kurdish representation in Iraqi government has increased since the American invasion in 2003. Jalal Talabani, the first Kurdish president of Iraq, was elected in 2005, and Kurds have held the presidential seat since, although the position is somewhat ornamental.


2004 Qamishli riots, 2004 events
On 12 March 2004, a football match in Qamishli between a local Kurdish team and an Arab team from Deir ez-Zor in Syria's southeast sparked violent clashes between fans of the opposing sides which spilled into the streets of the city. The fans of the Arab team reportedly rode about town in a bus, insulting the Iraqi Kurdish leaders Masoud Barzani and Jalal Talabani, then leaders of Iraqi Kurdistan's two main parties, and brandishing portraits of deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, whose infamous Al-Anfal Campaign killed an estimated 182,000 Kurdish civilians in Iraq.


2004 Qamishli riots, 2004 events
In response, Kurdish fans supposedly proclaimed "We will sacrifice our lives for Bush", referring to US President George W. Bush, who invaded Iraq in 2003, deposing Saddam and triggering the Iraq War. Tensions between the groups came to a head, and the Deir ez-Zor Arab fans attacked the Kurdish fans with sticks, stones, and knives. Government security forces brought in to quell the riot, fired into the crowd, killing six people, including three children—all of them were Kurds.


2004 Qamishli riots, 2004 events
The Ba'ath Party local office was burned down by the demonstrators, leading to the security forces responding and killing more than 15 of the rioters and wounding more than 100. Officials in Qamishli alleged that some Kurdish parties were collaborating with "foreign forces" to supposedly annex some villages in the area to northern Iraq. Events climaxed when Kurds in Qamishli toppled a statue of Hafez al-Assad. The Syrian army responded quickly, deploying thousands of troops backed by tanks and helicopters. At least 30 Kurds were killed as the security services re-took the city, over 2,000 were arrested at that time or subsequently.


2004 Qamishli riots, 2004 events, Prosecution of the Kurdish protestors
After the violence, President Bashar al-Assad visited the region aiming to achieve a "national unity" and supposedly pardoned 312 Kurds who were prosecuted of participating in the massacre.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, Moqebleh (Moquoble) refugee camp
After the 2004 events in Qamishli, thousands of Kurds fled to the Kurdish Region of Iraq. Local authorities there, the UNHCR and other UN agencies established the Moqebleh camp at a former Army base near Dohuk.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, Moqebleh (Moquoble) refugee camp
Several years later the KRG moved all refugees, who arrived before 2005, to housing in a second camp, known as Qamishli. The camp consists of a modest housing development with dozens of concrete block houses and a mosque.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, Moqebleh (Moquoble) refugee camp
The original camp at the former Army citadel now contains about 300 people. Many of the homes are made of cement blocks, covered with plastic tarpaulins. Latrines and showers are in separate buildings down the street. Authorities provide electricity, water trucks and food rations.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, Moqebleh (Moquoble) refugee camp
Kurds can leave the camp to work. As supposed refugees they cannot get government jobs, but are able work in the private sector, often as construction workers or drivers. The Kurds seem likely not to return to Syria until political conditions change.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, 2005 demonstrations
In June 2005, thousands of Kurds demonstrated in Qamishli to protest the assassination of Sheikh Khaznawi, a Kurdish cleric in Syria, resulting in the death of one policeman and injury to four Kurds. In March 2008, according to Human Rights Watch, Syrian security forces opened fire at Kurds who were celebrating the spring festival of Nowruz. The shooting killed three people.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, 2008 vigil in memory of the riots
On 21 March 2008, the Kurdish New Year (Newroz) a school class held a 5 minute vigil in memory of the  2004 Qamishli riots. The participants were investigated for holding the vigil.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, 2011 protests in Qamishli
With the eruption of the Syrian Civil War, the city of Qamishli became one of the protest arenas. On 12 March 2011, thousands of Syrian Kurds in Qamishli and al-Hasakah protested on the day of the Kurdish martyr, an annual event since 2004 al-Qamishli protests.


2004 Qamishli riots, Aftermath, 2012 rebellion
In 2012, armed elements among the Kurds launched Syrian Kurdish rebellion in north and north-western Syria, aiming against Syrian government forces. In the second half of 2012, the rebellion also resulted in clashes between Kurdish soldiers and the militants of the Free Syrian Army, both striving towards control of the region. The AANES would later gain control over most of northern Syria.


2004 Qatar Ladies Open
The 2004 Qatar Ladies Open (known as the 2004 Qatar Total Open for sponsorship reasons), was a women's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 4th edition of the Qatar Total Open, and was part of the Tier II Series of the 2004 WTA Tour. It took place at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha, Qatar from 1 March until 7 March 2004. Third-seeded Anastasia Myskina won the singles title.


2004 Qatar Ladies Open, Finals, Doubles
Svetlana Kuznetsova /  Elena Likhovtseva defeated  Janette Husárová /  Conchita Martínez, 7–6(7–4), 6–2


2004 Qatar Ladies Open – Doubles
Janet Lee and Wynne Prakusya were the defending champions, but both didn't participate in 2004.


2004 Qatar Ladies Open – Singles
Anastasia Myskina was the defending champion, and also won the title in 2004.


2004 Qatar Ladies Open – Singles, Main draw, Seeds
The top four seeds received a bye into the second round.


2004 Qatar Open
The 2004 Qatar Open, known as the 2004 Qatar ExxonMobil Open, for sponsorship reasons,  was a tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex in Doha in Qatar and was part of the International Series of the 2004 ATP Tour. The tournament ran from 5 January through 11 January 2004. Nicolas Escudé won the singles title.


2004 Qatar Open, Finals, Doubles
Martin Damm /  Cyril Suk defeated  Stefan Koubek /  Andy Roddick 6–2, 6–4


2004 Qatar Open – Doubles
Martin Damm and Cyril Suk were the defending champions and won in the final 6–2, 6–4 against Stefan Koubek and Andy Roddick.


2004 Qatar Open – Singles
Stefan Koubek was the defending champion but lost in the second round to Hyung-Taik Lee.


2004 Qatar Open – Singles
Nicolas Escudé won in the final 6–3, 7–6(7–4) against Ivan Ljubičić.


2004 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix
The 2004 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix was the thirteenth round of the 2004 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 30 September-2 October 2004 at the Losail International Circuit. It was the first running of the event.


2004 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix, 125 cc classification
The race produced a dead heat for first place between Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso. After a photo finish could not separate the riders, Lorenzo was awarded first place on the basis that he set a faster laptime during the race.


2004 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix, Championship standings after the race (motoGP)
Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round thirteen has concluded.


2004 Quebec municipal referendums
The 2004 Quebec municipal referendums  were held by the Quebec Liberal Party government of Jean Charest that came to power in the 2003 Quebec election, in fulfillment of a campaign promise to allow voters to have a say regarding the municipal reorganization program that had been undertaken by the preceding Parti Québécois administration.


2004 Quebec municipal referendums
From late 2000 to 2003, the PQ government had amalgamated (merged) many Quebec cities with their suburbs or neighbouring municipalities. This was imposed through legislation by the Quebec government rather than by the initiative of the municipalities themselves. In Canada, municipal governments are creatures of the provincial governments. However, the amalgamation proved unpopular in some places, with residents wishing to de-merge from the newly expanded cities and reconstitute their former municipalities. The 2004 referendums were organized to provide an opportunity to vote on the matter.


2004 Quebec municipal referendums, Signing of registers
As a first step, a minimum threshold of 10% of the population of a former municipality was required to sign a register in order for a referendum to be held. The registers were open from 16 to 20 May 2004. The results are shown below (those in bold were successful):


2004 Quebec municipal referendums, Referendums
On June 20, 2004, referendums were scheduled in the following municipalities. To be unmerged, they had to obtain a more than 50% of the vote for "yes", representing at least 35% of the electors. Municipalities that met those conditions are shown in bold. Municipalities obtaining only one of the two requirements are marked with an asterisk. *


2004 Quebec provincial by-elections
The Quebec by-elections of September 20, 2004 were held in the Quebec provincial electoral districts of Gouin, Laurier-Dorion, Nelligan and Vanier in Canada. They resulted in the election of two PQ, one Liberal and one ADQ Member to the National Assembly of Quebec.


2004 Quebec provincial by-elections
Liberal Yolande James won an easy victory on the Montreal-based Nelligan district, while PQ candidate Nicolas Girard handily succeeded Andre Boisclair in Gouin.


2004 Quebec provincial by-elections
Elsie Lefebvre of the Parti Québécois won a narrow victory in Laurier-Dorion, a traditionally Liberal district.


2004 Quebec provincial by-elections
Benefiting from anger over the CRTC's decision to revoke CHOI-FM's broadcasting license, Sylvain Légaré was elected in Vanier, under the ADQ label.


2004 Queen's Birthday Honours (Australia)
The 2004 Queen's Birthday Honours for Australia were announced on Monday 14 June 2004 by the Governor-General, Michael Jeffery.


2004 Queen's Birthday Honours (Australia)
The Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of the Queen's Official Birthday celebrations during the month of June.


2004 Queensland Cup
The 2004 Queensland Cup season was the 9th season of Queensland's top-level statewide rugby league competition run by the Queensland Rugby League. The competition featured 12 teams playing a 26-week long season (including finals) from March to September.


2004 Queensland Cup
The Burleigh Bears defeated the Easts Tigers 22–18 in the Grand Final at Suncorp Stadium to claim their second premiership. Burleigh halfback Brent McConnell was named the competition's Player of the Year, winning the Courier Mail Medal.


2004 Queensland Cup, Teams
Wests Panthers, who participated in the Queensland Cup since the inaugural season in 1996, withdrew from the competition at the end of 2003. They were replaced by Brothers-Valleys, a club formed in 2002 by the merger of Past Brothers, who played in the Queensland Cup from 1996 to 1998, and the Fortitude Valley Diehards, who originally folded in 1995.


2004 Queensland Cup, Teams
The Brisbane Broncos, Melbourne Storm and North Queensland Cowboys were again affiliated with the Toowoomba Clydesdales, Norths Devils and North Queensland Young Guns respectively.


2004 Queensland Cup, Grand Final
Burleigh, who finished as minor premiers for the second season in a row, defeated Easts by a point in their major semi final to earn a spot in the Grand Final, their third since 1997. Easts, who came 3rd in the regular season, defeated the 2nd placed Norths in the qualifying final to set up their match with Burleigh. The loss saw them then face Wynnum in the preliminary final, who they defeated 50–24 to set up a rematch with the Bears in the Grand Final. During the regular season, Burleigh defeated Easts in both of their encounters (46–20 in Round 5 and 36–34 in Round 15).


2004 Queensland Cup, Grand Final, First half
Burleigh opened the first half strongly when five-eighth Adam Hayden stepped through Easts' defensive line to score in the 6th minute. Three minutes later, Hayden put centre Nick Shaw through a hole to score the Bears' second try. The Tigers got back into the contest in the 20th minute, when hooker Trent Young muscled his way over underneath posts. Burleigh regained their 10-point lead when second rower John Flint burst through to score in the 31st minute as the Bears took a 16–6 lead into the break.


2004 Queensland Cup, Grand Final, Second half
Easts hit back 10 minutes into the second half when former Australian and Queensland representative Steve Renouf spun through a defender to score in the corner. Micheal Pearce converted the try from the sideline to cut the lead to four. A Reggie Cressbrook penalty goal pushed Burleigh's lead to six, setting up a tense final 20 minutes. With just over a minute to play, Burleigh's Kris Flint attempted a field goal that would've sealed the game for the Bears but missed to the right, giving Easts one last chance. With 30 seconds remaining, Tigers' halfback Dane Campbell put in a chip kick for winger Steve Beattie, who burst through two Burleigh defenders to score. Campbell then converted from out wide to send the game into extra time.


2004 Queensland Cup, Grand Final, Extra time
Easts had the first opportunity to win the game in the third minute of extra time, when Campbell attempted a field goal then went wide right. Both teams missed multiple field goal attempts before Burleigh prop Shane O'Flanagan barged over to score the premiership-winning try in the 17th minute of extra time.


2004 Queensland state election
An election was held in the Australian state of Queensland on 7 February 2004 to elect the 89 members of the state's Legislative Assembly.


2004 Queensland state election
The Labor Party (ALP) government of Premier Peter Beattie won a third term in office, with its large majority almost untouched.


2004 Queensland state election, Results
The Nationals regained three seats from Labor — Burdekin, Burnett and Charters Towers — as well as Lockyer from One Nation member Bill Flynn, but lost Keppel to Labor, leaving them with a total gain of three seats. The Liberal Party won Currumbin from Minister Merri Rose, as well as taking Rob Borbidge's former seat of Surfers Paradise from independent Lex Bell, who had won it in the 2001 by-election following Borbidge's resignation.


2004 Queensland state election, Results
Queensland state election, 7 February 2004Legislative Assembly << 2001–2006 >>


2004 Queensland state election, Subsequent changes
In 2005, Deputy Premier Terry Mackenroth and Speaker Ray Hollis resigned from parliament, forcing by-elections in their former seats of Chatsworth and Redcliffe on 20 August 2005. The Liberal Party  won both seats, with Michael Caltabiano successful in Chatsworth and Terry Rogers in Redcliffe. ALP member Robert Poole resigned from his seat of Gaven on 28 February 2006. National Party candidate Dr Alex Douglas won the Gaven by-election held on 1 April 2006.


2004 Queensland state election, Subsequent changes
The results of the three by-elections left Labor with 60 seats and lift National and Liberal Party representation to 16 and seven seats respectively.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre
About · The people · The land · Language · Culture · Diaspora · Persecutions · Tribes · Cuisine


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre
Politics · Writers · Poets · Military · Religion · Sports · Battles


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre
The 2004 Quetta Ashura massacre is the sectarian terrorist attack on Tuesday 2 March 2004 during an Ashura procession in the southwestern city of Quetta, in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. At least 42 persons were killed and more than 100 wounded in the attack. The attack took place in Liaqat Bazaar Quetta, almost all of the victims were from the Hazara ethnic minority of Balochistan. The incident occurred just after the incident of the Karbala Ashura bombings in Iraq.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Background
The Shia Muslim's processions are held throughout world to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussain Ibn Ali every year on the Day of Ashura. Like other parts of Pakistan, Quetta city has a notable population of Shia Muslims who mainly belong to Hazara community. In Quetta, the Ashura procession starts from Alamdar Road, where all the Imambargahs gather from around the city mainly from Hazara Town, then the procession moves to Mezan Chowk, where prayers are offered, and Matam was performed then moves to Liaqat Bazaar and ends on Alamdar Road.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Massacre
The Ashura procession was on its traditional route, when it reached the main Bazaar, three terrorist from top a building, threw hand grenades followed by firing with automatic weapons before they blew themselves up, which left around 50 dead and more 100 injured.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Massacre, Perpetrators
The police identified the assailants bodies after DNA tests and investigations. They belonged to Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ), the banned Pakistani terrorist group. The Police arrested a police constable who allegedly allowed the terrorist to use his house to plan the attack.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Response and reactions
United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan condemned the attacks and named it a cowardly act.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Response and reactions
The, Secretary-General of Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), Abdulwahed Belkeziz said


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Response and reactions
Such terrorist acts can only be designed to incite sectarian (Sunni-Shia) strife and infighting among Muslims and to shed their blood.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Response and reactions
The Embassy of Japan in Islamabad issued a press release


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Response and reactions
Japan is deeply shocked and angered by the terrorist bombings in Baghdad and Karbala, Iraq, and the attacks in Quetta that occurred on Tuesday, causing many deaths and injuries. Terrorism cannot be justified on any account. Japan reiterates its firm condemnation of brutal terrorist attacks, which victimize the innocent. I extend my heartfelt condolences to the victims and the bereaved and wish the injured will have a speedy recovery.


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Response and reactions
Interior Minister of Pakistan, Faisal Saleh Hayat condemned the attack and said


2004 Quetta Ashura massacre, Response and reactions
These misguided extremists want to create chaos in the country.


2004 RCA Championships
The 2004 RCA Championships was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the 17th edition of the event known that year as the RCA Championships, and was part of the International Series of the 2004 ATP Tour. It took place at the Indianapolis Tennis Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, from July 19 through July 26, 2004. It was the second event of the 2004 US Open series, after the Mercedes Benz Cup in Los Angeles. Andy Roddick won the singles title.


2004 RCA Championships, Finals, Doubles
Jordan Kerr /  Jim Thomas defeated  Wayne Black /  Kevin Ullyett 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 6–3


2004 RCA Championships – Doubles
Mario Ančić and Andy Ram were the defending champions, but Ančić did not participate this year. Ram partnered Jonathan Erlich, losing in the quarterfinals.


2004 RCA Championships – Doubles
Jordan Kerr and Jim Thomas won the title, defeating Wayne Black and Kevin Ullyett 6–7(7–9), 7–6(7–3), 6–3 in the final.


2004 RCA Championships – Singles
Andy Roddick was the defending champion and successfully defended his title, defeating Nicolas Kiefer, 6–2, 6–3 in the final.


2004 RCSL season
The 2004 Rugby Canada Super League season was the seventh season for the RCSL.


2004 RCSL season, Championship Final
The Vancouver Island Crimson Tide (Eastern Division champions) defeated the Newfoundland Rock (Western Division Champions) 14-8 in the Championship Final, played in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador on 14 August 2004 to win the MacTier Cup.


2004 RLIF Awards
The 2004 RLIF Awards were presented on Monday November 22, 2004. The separate Rugby League World Golden Boot Award were incorporated into the proceedings.


2004 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards
The 2004 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards (Chinese: 2004年度十大中文金曲得獎) was held in 2004 for the 2003 music season.


2004 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards, Top 10 song awards
The top 10 songs (十大中文金曲) of 2003 are as follows. This year only 9 songs were awarded.


2004 Race of Champions
The 2004 Race of Champions took place on December 4 at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis. Unlike previous events at a gravel course in Gran Canaria, the new Stade de France event was all-tarmac, so road racers became more competitive than rally drivers.


2004 Race of Champions
The Nations' Cup underwent some significant changes - nations were now represented by only two competitors instead of three, with the motorcyclists axed. In addition, the rules regarding having one rally driver and one circuit driver were relaxed, leading to some all-circuit driver teams. As the host nation, France was permitted to field two teams.


2004 Race of Champions
The individual event was won by a then-relatively unknown Heikki Kovalainen, and the team event by Jean Alesi and Sébastien Loeb representing France. There was also a special "World Champions Challenge" race held between 2004 Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher and 2004 world rally champion Sébastien Loeb, which Schumacher won.


2004 Race of Champions, Participants
* - Casey Mears was a last-minute substitute for Jeff Gordon, who was hospitalized with the flu and told not to participate in this event by doctors while at NASCAR's awards banquet in New York City that week.


2004 Racquetball World Championships
The 12th Racquetball World Championships were held in Anyang (South Korea) from July 30 to August 7, 2004, with players from 17 different countries. The USA swept the gold medals, winning both singles and doubles in the Men’s and Women’s competitions as well as both Men’s and Women’s team competitions.


2004 Racquetball World Championships
Jack Huczek of the USA won Men’s Singles for the 2nd time, successfully defending the title he won in 2002. Cheryl Gudinas of the USA won her 3rd straight Women’s Singles title.


2004 Racquetball World Championships
In doubles, the USA’s Jackie Paraiso and Kim Russell successfully defended their Women’s Doubles title. The win was the third consecutive for Russell, who won with Kersten Hallander in 2000. Paraiso’s win was her 6th Women’s Doubles World Championship. Their team-mates, Mike Dennison and Shane Vanderson both won for the first time in Men’s Doubles.


2004 Radio Disney Music Awards
The 2004 Radio Disney Music Awards was an awards show held Radio Disney studios. Hilary Duff, as in 2003, was the biggest winner that year. The award was broadcast on the Radio Disney network.


2004 Rally Argentina
The 2004 Rally Argentina (formally the 24th CTI Movil Rally Argentina) was the eighth round of the 2004 World Rally Championship. The race was held over four days between 15 and 18 July 2004, and was based in Villa Carlos Paz, Argentina. Citroen's Carlos Sainz won the race, his 26th and final win in the World Rally Championship..


2004 Rally Australia
The 2004 Rally Australia (formally the 17th Telstra Rally Australia) was  the sixteenth and final round of the 2004 World Rally Championship. The race was held over four days between 11 November and 14 November 2004, and was based in Perth, Australia. Citroën's Sébastien Loeb won the race, his 10th win in the World Rally Championship.


2004 Rally Australia, Entry list
1 Petter Solberg. 2 Mikko Hirvonen. 3 Sébastian Loeb. 4 Carlos Sainz. 5 Marcus Grönholm. 6 Harri Rovanperä. 7 Markko Martin. 8 Francois Duval.


2004 Rally Finland
The 2004 Rally Finland (formally the 54th Neste Rally Finland) was the ninth round of the 2004 World Rally Championship season and was held between 6 and 8 August 2004. The rally was based in Jyväskylä. Peugeot's Marcus Grönholm won the race, his 16th win in the World Rally Championship.


2004 Rally Mexico
The 2004 Rally Mexico (formally the 1st Corona Rally Mexico) was the third round of the 2004 World Rally Championship. The race was held over three days between 12 March and 14 March 2004, and was based in León, Mexico. Ford's Markko Märtin won the race, his 3rd win in the World Rally Championship.


2004 Rally New Zealand
The 2004 Rally New Zealand (formally the 35th Propecia Rally New Zealand) was the fourth round of the 2004 World Rally Championship. The race was held over four days between 15 April and 18 April 2004, and was based in Auckland, New Zealand. Subaru's Petter Solberg won the race, his 6th win in the World Rally Championship.


2004 Rally of Turkey
The 2004 Rally of Turkey (formally the 5th Rally of Turkey) was the seventh round of the 2004 World Rally Championship. The race was held over four days between 24 June and 27 June 2004, and was based in Antalya, Turkey. Citroën's Sébastien Loeb won the race, his 8th win in the World Rally Championship.


2004 Rallye Deutschland
The 2004 Rallye Deutschland (formally the 23. OMV ADAC Rallye Deutschland) was the tenth round of the 2004 World Rally Championship season. The race was held over three days between 20 August and 22 August 2004, and was based in Trier, Germany. Citroën's Sébastien Loeb won the race, his 9th win in the World Rally Championship.


2004 Recopa Sudamericana
The 2004 Recopa Sudamericana was the 12th Recopa Sudamericana, an annual football match between the winners of the previous season's Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana competitions.


2004 Recopa Sudamericana
The match was contested by Boca Juniors, winners of the 2003 Copa Libertadores, and Cienciano, winners of the 2003 Copa Sudamericana, on Diciembre 10 , 2004. Cienciano managed to defeat Boca Juniors 2-4 on penalties after a 1-1 tie to win their first Recopa and obtain their second international title.


2004 Red Bull Air Race World Series
The 2004 Red Bull Air Race World Series was the second Red Bull Air Race World Series season. It debuted on June 20, 2004 and ended on September 18.


2004 Red Bull Air Race World Series
In the 2004 season, the number of Air Race venues increased from two to three locations. The leg in Zeltweg Austria was removed and RAF Kemble (now called Cotswold Airport) in the United Kingdom became the season opener. Reno, Nevada in the United States was also added to the calendar. And the race in Budapest moved away from Tokol Airport, to the Danube, creating the first race over water.


2004 Red Bull Air Race World Series
In addition to the previous year's competitors, three pilots from the USA, Mike Mangold, Michael Goulian and David Martin, a Dutch pilot Frank Versteegh and Nicolas Ivanoff of France took part at the Air Races in 2004. American Kirby Chambliss,  became champion in 2004 with a total of 17 points winning two of the three races, followed by Hungarian Péter Besenyei (12 points), who won the both races in 2003. British pilot Steve Jones and German aviator  Klaus Schrodt shared the 3rd place with eight points.


2004 Redditch Borough Council election
Elections to Redditch Borough Council were held on 10 June 2004. The whole council was up for election with boundary changes since the last election in 2003. The Labour Party gained overall control of the council from no overall control.


2004 Redfern riots
The 2004 Redfern riots took place on the evening of Sunday the 15th February 2004, in the inner Sydney suburb of Redfern, New South Wales, and were sparked by the  death of 17 Year old Thomas Hickey, also known as TJ Hickey resulting from a bike accident in Waterloo on the 14th February 2004.


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
The circumstances surrounding Thomas "T.J." Hickey's death are disputed. On the morning of Saturday 14 February 2004, the 17-year-old Aboriginal Australian boy was riding his bicycle downhill while a police vehicle was patrolling the nearby area. According to New South Wales Police, he collided with a protruding gutter and was flung into the air and impaled on a 1.2-metre (3 ft 11 in) high fence outside a block of units off Phillip Street, Waterloo, causing penetrating injuries of the neck and chest. Police officers at the scene administered first aid until New South Wales Ambulance officers arrived. Hickey died with his family by his side early on 15 February 2004.


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
A large proportion of the inquest centered on whether police were "pursuing" Hickey, or "following" him. At the conclusion of the coronial inquest, NSW Police Commissioner Ken Moroney was interviewed on ABC Radio and gave this explanation of the distinction: "I think if you were to ask the person on the street the definition between, and not a Concise Oxford Dictionary definition, but if you were to ask somebody their interpretation of being followed and being pursued I think they are two distinct and clear actions. Being followed, I think, in the ordinary layman's mind, creates a particular picture. Being pursued by police creates a completely different picture and clearly there was no evidence that Mr Hickey was being pursued in the normal definition of that word".


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
Moroney supported the driver of the police truck, Senior Constable Michael Hollingsworth, in his refusal to give evidence. Both maintained this was a "normal civilian right".


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
According to police, they arrived at the scene quickly with Constables Hollingsworth and Reynolds arriving a few minutes after the first police vehicle. Thomas was hanging by his shirt and was not seen to be impaled but in a serious condition. Police immediately rendered first aid and were unable to save him as "the injury was probably non-survivable". At no time was Police Rescue or NSW Ambulance called off from attending. Evidence exists of Hollingsworth making numerous calls for the ETA of ambulance paramedics. When ambulance officers arrived, Hollingsworth and Reynolds Helped move Thomas into the Ambulance.


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
A female cousin of Hickey made herself known to Hollingsworth and accompanied both Hollingsworth and Reynolds in the police truck when they left the scene, escorting the ambulance to the Children's Hospital at Randwick. Upon arrival at the hospital, Hollingsworth and Reynolds waited at the accident and emergency department. Some time later Hollingsworth and Reynolds, still at the hospital waiting for TJ's family, were ordered away by a hospital social worker, possibly because Hollingsworth was covered in blood and might have upset the family and members of the public.


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
There was an outstanding arrest warrant in Hickey's name, but police have consistently maintained that the patrol car was searching for a different individual, wanted in connection with a violent bag snatch at Redfern railway station earlier the same day. There was no evidence of a pursuit with Hollingsowrth and Reynolds being the second Police vehicle(caged truck) to attend the scene.


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
The Hickey family and supporters dispute this version of events, claiming that witnesses saw Hickey's bike clipped by the police car, thus propelling him onto the fence. This claim was not supported by the testimony of two Aboriginal Liaison Officers to a NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into the death, though neither of the officers were present at the scene. (One of the officers was later convicted of murder and arson, an act for which he had blamed police.)


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
Despite calls to re-open the coronial inquest, the New South Wales government has as of 2020 refused to do so.


2004 Redfern riots, Thomas Hickey's death
An appeal to the United Nations Human rights commission by lawyers acting for the Hickey Family to investigate the death and any racial motivation concluded the death to be an accident.


2004 Redfern riots, Riots
On the evening of 15 February, Aboriginal and non-Indigenous youths and adults, most of them from The Block, the Waterloo estate and other inner city housing precincts gathered at Eveleigh Street quickly after the word of the death spread. Persons were seen preparing petrol bombs and stockpiling bricks, resulting in police closing the Eveleigh Street entrance to the station, which turned the crowd violent and they began to throw bottles, bricks, live fireworks and Molotov cocktails. The violence escalated into a full-scale riot around the Block, during which Redfern railway station was briefly alight, suffering superficial damage. The riot continued into the early morning, until police used fire brigade water hoses to disperse the crowd. Total damages included a torched car and 40 injured police officers.


2004 Redfern riots, Post-riot
A memorial service was held on 19 February 2004 in Redfern, and in Walgett, New South Wales (Hickey's hometown), on 22 February 2004.


2004 Redfern riots, Post-riot
In 2005, the University of Technology Sydney's students' association donated a plaque with TJ's portrait, with an inscription that read: "On the 14th February, 2004, TJ Hickey, aged 17, was impaled upon the metal fence above, arising from a police pursuit. The young man died as a result of his wounds the next day. In our hearts you will stay TJ." Local police, the NSW government and the Department of Housing have refused to allow the plaque to be placed on the wall below the fence where Hickey was impaled unless the words "police pursuit" were changed to "tragic accident", which the family has refused to do.


2004 Redfern riots, Post-riot
In 2007, the New South Wales Police were fined $100,000 after the NSW Industrial Relations Commission found it had failed to ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of its employees under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.


2004 Redfern riots, Legacy
The 2013 film Around the Block focuses partly on the riots.


2004 Reform Party presidential primaries
The Reform Party of the United States of America held primary elections for its presidential candidate in May 2004. Ralph Nader was overwhelmingly endorsed as candidate.


2004 Reform Party presidential primaries
For a time, it seemed as though industrialist Ted Weill, among the party's most widely respected members, would become the front-runner for the nomination. When he learned that Ralph Nader would also seek the party's nomination, he dropped out of the race and endorsed Nader's candidacy. He ultimately contributed  thousands of dollars to Nader's  political campaigns. During his acceptance speech at the 2004 Reform Party National Convention in Irving, Texas, Nader thanked Weill for his support.


2004 Renault Clio Cup United Kingdom
The 2004 Elf Renault Clio Cup United Kingdom season began at Thruxton on 10 April and finished after 20 races over 10 events at Donington Park on 26 September. The Championship was won by Paul Rivett driving for Boulevard Team Racing.


2004 Renault Clio Cup United Kingdom
The season was marred by the death of Kevin Lloyd at the May Thruxton meeting.


2004 Renault Clio Cup United Kingdom, Drivers' Championship
† Kevin Lloyd was fatally injured in an accident during Round 9 at Thruxton.


2004 Republican National Convention
The 2004 Republican National Convention, the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States, took place from August 30 to September 2, 2004 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The convention is one of a series of historic quadrennial meetings at which the Republican candidates for president and vice president, and party platform are formally adopted. Attendance included 2,509 delegates and 2,344 alternate delegates from the states, territories and the District of Columbia. The convention marked the formal end of the active primary election season. As of 2021, it is the most recent major-party nominating convention to be held in New York City.


2004 Republican National Convention
The theme of the convention was "Fulfilling America's Promise by Building a Safer World and a More Hopeful America." Defining moments of the 2004 Republican National Convention include a featured keynote address by Zell Miller and the confirmation of the nomination of President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for reelection. Bush and Cheney faced the Democratic Party's ticket of John Kerry and John Edwards in the 2004 presidential election and won.


2004 Republican National Convention, Platform
Apart from nominating a candidate for president and vice president, the 2004 Republican National Convention was also charged with crafting an official party platform and political agenda for the next four years. At the helm of the Platform Committee was United States Senator and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee, Congresswoman Melissa Hart of Pennsylvania and Colorado Governor Bill Owens. The committee worked with the Bush campaign to develop the draft platform.


2004 Republican National Convention, Platform
The platform adopted by the 2004 Republican National Convention was the longest in the party's history compared to the mere 1,000-word platform adopted at the first convention in 1856. At 48,000 words, it was twice the length of the one adopted at the 2004 Democratic National Convention which was only 19,500 words.


2004 Republican National Convention, Venue
The choice of Madison Square Garden on January 31, 2003 by all 165 members of the Republican National Committee as the venue for the 2004 Republican National Convention meant that New York City would host a major Republican nominating convention for the first time in its history. On July 19, control of Madison Square Garden was officially handed over to the Republican Party under the administration of Chief Executive Officer of the Convention, Bill Harris. Mayor Michael Bloomberg thanked the party for their choice, for which he had vigorously lobbied, noting it as a significant display of support for the city and an economic boom.


2004 Republican National Convention, Venue, Security
Like the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officially declared the 2004 Republican National Convention a National Special Security Event (NSSE). As such, the United States Secret Service was charged with employing and coordinating all federal and local agencies including the various bureaus of DHS, the FBI, and the NYPD to secure the venue from terrorist attacks. Expected security expenditures reached $70 million, $50 million of which was funded by the federal government.


2004 Republican National Convention, Venue, Security
The city employed an active beat of 10,000 police officers deployed as Hercules teams—uniformed in full riot gear and body armor, and equipped with submachine guns and rifles. Commuter and Amtrak trains entering and exiting Penn Station were scoured by bomb-sniffing dogs as uniformed police officers were attached to buses carrying delegates. All employees of buildings surrounding Madison Square Garden were subjected to thorough screening and background checks.


2004 Republican National Convention, Venue, Security
The NYPD infiltrated and compiled dossiers on protest groups (most of whom were doing nothing illegal), leading to over 1,800 arrests and subsequent fingerprinting.


2004 Republican National Convention, Venue, Timing
The convention took place in New York City a week before the third anniversary of September 11. The attacks were a primary theme of the convention, from the choice of speakers to repeated invocations of the attacks. At the convention, there was a performance of "Amazing Grace" by Daniel Rodriguez, a tribute to those killed on September 11. Relatives of three of the victims spoke and talked about how September 11 brought the country together. Also contributing musically were Brooks & Dunn, Sara Evans, Lee Ann Womack, Darryl Worley.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers
Early in the summer leading up to the 2004 Republican National Convention, Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie announced the first slate of convention speakers. He added, "It is an honor to announce the addition of these outstanding Americans to the 2004 Republican National Convention program. For the past three and a half years, President Bush has led with strength and compassion and these speakers reflect that." Chief Executive Officer of the Convention Bill Harris commented, "These speakers have seen President Bush's strong, steady leadership and each will attest to his character from a unique perspective. Their vast experience and various points of view are a testament to the depth and breadth of the support for the Republican ticket in 2004."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Zell Miller
Considered to be one of the most interesting choices for speakers at the convention was a keynote address by Georgia Senator Zell Miller, a conservative Democrat. Miller had consistently voted with Republicans. In an editorial in The Wall Street Journal, Miller cited that the reason for his defection was that, "I barely recognize my party anymore." He continued, "Today, it's the Democratic Party that has mastered the art of division and diversion.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Zell Miller
To run for president as a Democrat these days you have to go from interest group to interest group, cap in hand, asking for the support of liberal kingmakers." He finished by saying, "I still believe in hope and opportunity and, when it comes right down to it, Mr. Bush is the man who represents hope and opportunity."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Zell Miller
His keynote address was a visceral smite to Democrats and an excoriating attack on John Kerry, blaming him for the divisions in America. Notably, he mocked Kerry's call for strength in the armed forces by noting several important military projects that Kerry had opposed, saying that Kerry wanted "forces armed with what - spitballs?" Including Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, he claimed "no pair has been more wrong, more loudly, more often, than the two senators from Massachusetts: Ted Kennedy and John Kerry."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Zell Miller
In his speech, Miller also heaped his praise for 1940 Republican Presidential nominee Wendell Willkie for supporting President Roosevelt's establishment of a military draft, raising concerns about the intentions of President Bush in this area.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Zell Miller
Zell Miller also delivered the keynote address on behalf of Bill Clinton in 1992 at Madison Square Garden. He remained a Democrat in the Senate until leaving in 2005 (he was not running for reelection). However, after this address, his affiliation with the national Democratic Party was unquestionably over.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Nancy Reagan's absence
Nancy Reagan's spokesperson announced that the former First Lady fully supported President Bush for the general election. The spokesperson added that while the former First Lady and her children would be absent from the 2004 Republican National Convention, President Reagan's son with Jane Wyman, Michael Reagan, had accepted an invitation to address the delegates. Nancy Reagan appeared in the filmed tribute he introduced. He dedicated the film to everyone who helped make his father president of the United States.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Nancy Reagan's absence
During the convention, delegates paid tribute to Reagan in different ways. Many of the speakers from California and Illinois, including House Speaker Dennis Hastert, mentioned Reagan in their speeches and compared Reagan to Bush. Those from Illinois, including Hastert, compared Bush to both Reagan and Abraham Lincoln, another native son of their state.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Monday, August 30, 2004, Quotations
"[ A] heroic story comes to us from Michigan, where 19-year-old Rita Arnaout was involved in a four-car pileup that nearly killed her in March. While doctors were operating, one of her lungs collapsed. It turns out there was a malignant tumor pressing against her lung and heart. Despite the debilitating effects of cancer treatment, Rita insists on continuing her work as a volunteer for the Bush campaign. Her doctor said he didn't think it was a good idea. Rita started crying and said, 'But President Bush needs my help'. She also says if someone like her can spend time working the phones for President Bush, we all can."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Monday, August 30, 2004, Quotations
"We should remember, it wasn't so long ago that confidence in New York was in short supply. When I took the oath of office nearly three years ago, we were a city in mourning a city that had, in a few dreadful hours, lost almost 3,000 of our own husbands, wives, sons, and daughters from every part of the nation, and every corner of the globe. There were those who doubted then whether this city could hold onto the gains made during the 90s under Mayor Giuliani.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Monday, August 30, 2004, Quotations
A lot of people were wondering what the future held for New York City, or whether we even had a future. But neither America nor President Bush ever stopped believing in us. Nearly two years ago, with the city's fate still a question mark in many minds, our President decided that this Convention would come to New York. This was a show of faith that required courage and vision one that all New Yorkers will not forget. And today it fills me with enormous pride and gratitude to tell everyone that New York City is back!"


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Monday, August 30, 2004, Quotations
"All of us, despite the differences that enliven our politics, are united in the one big idea that freedom is our birthright and its defense is always our first responsibility. All other responsibilities come second. We must not lose sight of that as we debate who among us should bear the greatest responsibility for keeping us safe and free. We must, whatever our disagreements, stick together in this great challenge of our time.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Monday, August 30, 2004, Quotations
My friends in the Democratic Party and I'm fortunate to call many of them my friends assure us they share the conviction that winning the war against terrorism is our government's most important obligation. I don't doubt their sincerity. They emphasize that military action alone won't protect us, that this war has many fronts: in courts, financial institutions, in the shadowy world of intelligence, and in diplomacy. They stress that America needs the help of her friends to combat an evil that threatens us all, that our alliances are as important to victory as are our armies. We agree."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Monday, August 30, 2004, Quotations
"We are Americans first, Americans last, Americans always. Let us argue our differences. But remember we are not enemies, but comrades in a war against a real enemy, and take courage from the knowledge that our military superiority is matched only by the superiority of our ideals, and our unconquerable love for them. Our adversaries are weaker than us in arms and men, but weaker still in causes. They fight to express a hatred for all that is good in humanity. We fight for love of freedom and justice, a love that is invincible. Keep that faith. Keep your courage. Stick together. Stay strong. Do not yield. Do not flinch. Stand up. Stand up with our President and fight. We're Americans. We're Americans, and we'll never surrender."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Monday, August 30, 2004, Quotations
"From the first Republican President, Abraham Lincoln, to President George W. Bush our party's great contribution is to expand freedom in our own land and all over the world. And our party is at its best when it makes certain that we have a powerful national defense in a still very dangerous world. I don't believe we're right about everything and Democrats are wrong about everything. Neither party has a monopoly on virtue. But I do believe that there are times in our history when our ideas are more necessary and important for what we are facing."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Tuesday, August 31, 2004, Quotations
"We live in a great country. A nation of good people in pursuit of great ideals defined by our Founders, defended by citizen-soldiers, and delivered to us. We inherited a great nation. So must our children! No nation whatever the size of its armed forces or economy can sustain greatness unless it educates all, not just some, of its citizens. No one understands that better than President Bush. He's always had a compassionate vision for education: Students challenged by high standards; teachers armed with proper resources; parents empowered with information and choices. Young adults with meaningful diplomas in their hands not despair in their hearts."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Tuesday, August 31, 2004, Quotations
"My fellow Americans, how do you know if you are a Republican? I'll tell you how. If you believe that government should be accountable to the people, not the people to the government, then you are a Republican! If you believe a person should be treated as an individual, not as a member of an interest group, then you are a Republican! If you believe your family knows how to spend your money better than the government does, then you are a Republican!


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Tuesday, August 31, 2004, Quotations
If you believe our educational system should be held accountable for the progress of our children, then you are a Republican! If you believe this country, not the United Nations, is the best hope of democracy in the world, then you are a Republican! And, ladies and gentlemen if you believe we must be fierce and relentless and terminate terrorism, then you are a Republican!"


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Tuesday, August 31, 2004, Quotations
"There is another way you can tell you're a Republican. You have faith in free enterprise, faith in the resourcefulness of the American people ...and faith in the U.S. economy. To those critics who are so pessimistic about our economy, I say: Don't be economic girlie men!"


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Tuesday, August 31, 2004, Quotations
"This time of war has been a time of great hardship for our military families. The President and I want all our men and women in uniform and their wives and husbands, mothers and fathers, sons and daughters to know we appreciate their sacrifice. We know it will mean a more peaceful future for our children and grandchildren. No American President ever wants to go to war. Abraham Lincoln didn't want to go to war, but he knew saving the union required it. Franklin Roosevelt didn't want to go to war—but he knew defeating tyranny demanded it.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Tuesday, August 31, 2004, Quotations
And my husband didn't want to go to war, but he knew the safety and security of America and the world depended on it. I remember some very quiet nights at the dinner table. George was weighing grim scenarios and ominous intelligence about potentially even more devastating attacks. I listened many nights as George talked with foreign leaders on the phone, or in our living room, or at our ranch in Crawford. I remember an intense weekend at Camp David. George and Prime Minister Tony Blair were discussing the threat from Saddam Hussein.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Tuesday, August 31, 2004, Quotations
And I remember sitting in the window of the White House, watching as my husband walked on the lawn below. I knew he was wrestling with these agonizing decisions that would have such profound consequence for so many lives and for the future of our world. And I was there when my husband had to decide. Once again, as in our parents' generation, America had to make the tough choices, the hard decisions, and lead the world toward greater security and freedom."


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Wednesday, September 1, 2004, Balloting
President Bush was nominated at the end of a "rolling roll call" that had started the day before, when Pennsylvania's delegation cast the deciding votes.


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Wednesday, September 1, 2004, Quotations
John Kerry believes that government can spend our money better than we can. But most Americans don't share this view. That's why John Kerry has to preach the politics of division, of envy and resentment. That's why they talk so much about two Americas. But class warfare is not an economic policy. And the politics of division will not make America stronger, and it will not lead to prosperity.'" Paul Ryan


2004 Republican National Convention, Speakers, Thursday, September 2, 2004, Balloting
Vice President Dick Cheney was nominated by voice vote for reelection.


2004 Republican National Convention, Aftermath
According to Rasmussen weekly tracking polls, Bush led Kerry by 0.3% on the poll released August 26. On September 2, Bush's lead had increased to 2.5%. On September 9, the lead had decreased to 1.3%. Bush would maintain his leads throughout the fall.


2004 Republican National Convention, Protests
Protest activity included marches, rallies, performances, demonstrations, exhibits, and acts of civil disobedience in New York City to protest the 2004 Republican National Convention and the nomination of President George W. Bush for the 2004 U.S. presidential election, as well as a much smaller number of people who marched to support Bush at the convention.


2004 Republican National Convention, Protests
On May 17, 2006 Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now! Reported on the FBI launch of a criminal civil rights investigation of NYPD after Desert storm veteran Dennis Kyne went to trial and had all charges dropped due to video evidence showing the police falsified reports and sworn testimony.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity
2004 Republican National Convention protest activity includes the broad range of marches, rallies, performances, demonstrations, exhibits, and acts of civil disobedience in New York City to protest the 2004 Republican National Convention and the nomination of President George W. Bush for the 2004 U.S. presidential election.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity
Hundreds of groups organized protests, including United for Peace and Justice, a coalition of more than 800 anti-war and social justice groups, and International ANSWER. Over 1800 individuals were arrested by the authorities, a record for a political convention in the U.S. However 90% of those charges were eventually dropped.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Thursday, August 26
Four young professionals and students, who called themselves Operation Sybil, hung a banner over the front of the Plaza Hotel. Two of them, including Terra Lawson-Remer, rappelled down the front of the hotel, after which they were able to hang the banner more than a dozen stories above the ground.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Thursday, August 26
The banner, which measured 60 feet (18 m) wide and roughly three stories high, said "Truth," with an arrow pointing in one direction (toward Central Park, where the United for Peace March was supposed to take place) and "Bush," with an arrow pointing the other direction (toward Madison Square Garden, the site of the convention). The four climbers were quickly arrested and the banner was removed by the police. One police officer was injured in the process when he stepped on a skylight and it broke. As a result of the officer's injury, the climbers were charged with assault of a police officer along with their other charges.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Thursday, August 26
Twelve AIDS activists from the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) staged a naked protest in front of Madison Square Garden, demanding debt cancellation for poor countries. They took their clothes off in the crosswalk, stopping traffic, as they joined hands and began chanting "Bush, Stop AIDS. Drop the Debt Now!" "Drop the Debt" and "Stop AIDS" were stenciled in black paint on their chests and backs. Their intent was to tell "the naked truth" about Bush's global AIDS policies – that they are inadequate, and that debt cancellation must be a top priority.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Thursday, August 26
Seven of the protesters were completely naked, three were semi-clothed, and two others, who stood off to the side, were fully clothed, and held a large banner that read "W: Drop the Debt. Stop AIDS." The two clothed activists climbed on top of a nearby trailer to make the banner more visible. They were later arrested and faced several charges, including endangerment of a police officer, which was a result of the fact that officers had to climb on top of the trailer, which was a generator, in order to arrest them.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Thursday, August 26
Although there were several times as many police officers as there were protesters on the scene, it was seventeen minutes before the activists were arrested. They were represented by Ron Kuby, and all of the charges were later dropped. A few protesters who were semi-clothed were not arrested, and faced no charges.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Thursday, August 26
The activists later became one of the subjects in photographer Richard Avedon's last project, published in the New Yorker.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Friday, August 27
Between 5,000 and 6,000 participants took part in the Critical Mass bicycle ride. The monthly NYC Critical Mass ride promoted by the environmental group Time's Up! occurs on the last Friday of each month and prior to this ride had usually attracted about 1,500 riders. Police eventually blockaded roads and arrested 264 people in relation to that event. Most of them were charged with disorderly conduct and held in custody for up to 72 hours. This was the first time the NYPD had made any significant arrests of Critical Mass participants in New York City.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Sunday, August 29
United for Peace and Justice organized the main march of the week, one of the largest protests in U.S. history, in which protesters marched past Madison Square Garden, the site of the convention. The march included hundreds of separate contingents as well as individual marchers. One Thousand Coffins, a nationwide group of citizens, veterans and clergy, held a procession of one thousand full-scale flag-draped coffins commemorating the fallen troops. Several hundred members of Billionaires for Bush held a mock countermarch. Estimates of crowd size ranged from 120,000 (unnamed police spokesman) to over 500,000 (organizers, second unnamed police source). In March, 2007 NYPD Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne stated about the RNC protests: "You certainly had 800,000 on August 29."


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Sunday, August 29
Organizers held a pre-march press conference in front of thousands on 7th Avenue. Several people spoke in opposition to the war in Iraq and Bush administration policies including Michael Moore, Jesse Jackson, Congressman Charles Rangel, and a father who had lost his son in Iraq. The whole event lasted six hours, with the lead contingent finishing the march long before thousands of people could even move from the starting point.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Sunday, August 29
The City government, under Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg, had earlier denied the protesters a permit to hold a rally in Central Park following the march, citing concern for the park's grass. The West Side Highway was offered instead, but organizers refused, citing exorbitant costs for the extra sound equipment and problems for the location. Organizers encouraged people to go to Central Park following the march's conclusion in Union Square. Disturbances were minor, as New York Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly reported about 200 arrests with 9 felonies, most of them occurring after the march had concluded. Incidentally, this was also the day when the Protest Warrior and Communists for Kerry counter-protest groups held their main counter-demonstrations in support of Bush and the RNC.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Sunday, August 29
For the most part, the march proceeded peacefully and without violence. The only major incident during the march occurred when some individuals of unknown affiliations torched a large dragon float between Madison Square Garden and the Fox News building. The float turned into a huge fireball, and the march was halted until firefighters were able to clear the street of debris. Later, there was a minor scuffle as some individuals tried to take some of the Protest Warriors' signs. There were isolated incidents of violent attacks against delegates according to Randal C. Archibold, writer from the New York Times. In his article, "Protesters' Encounters With Delegates on the Town Turn Ugly," he discussed events that occurred in around the theater district, including one incident outside "The Lion King" on 42nd Street, in which a delegate is punched in the face by a protester running by.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Monday, August 30
Still We Rise, a coalition of 52 NYC-based community organizations for the poor and people of color, marched at noon from Union Square to Madison Square Garden, and held a rally by the Garden.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Monday, August 30
At 4 PM, the Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign, a national campaign involving over sixty organizations, held a rally by the United Nations on the Dag Hammarskjold Plaza. Along with many homeless and poor people who have been marching with the PPEHRC through New Jersey and living in a "mobile Bushville" (which settled in Brooklyn a week before the Convention), thousands thronged the streets despite having been denied a permit and marched down Second Avenue and up Eighth Avenue to Madison Square Garden, the police having decided not to stop the protesters. A few troublemakers apparently acting alone disrupted the march towards the end by tearing open police barricades, with one person attacking a plainclothes police detective who had driven his scooter into the crowd (see note below), knocking him unconscious. Police made several arrests and deployed tear gas.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Monday, August 30
There is considerable dispute involving this incident, as many eyewitnesses said they had no idea this was a policeman, who intentionally rammed his motorcycle straight into a dense crowd, hitting and injuring people, which started the altercation. One source said: "The divide and arrest tactics used by the police in the march have been seen in the past several days in New York here, and as have the use of undercover officers, mopeds and motorcycles."


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Monday, August 30
Another source stated: "Eyewitness reports confirmed that an undercover police officer in a scooter rammed his way into the throngs of protesters, driving as fast as 20 miles an hour, as the police were splitting the crowd, before being knocked off and beaten by an angry demonstrator. ' What kind of person would ram into dozens of people in a scooter with a line of police behind him?' asked protester Gonzalo Hereda afterwards in disbelief."


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Tuesday, August 31
A group called the A31 Action Coalition called for massive civil disobedience on Tuesday, August 31.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Tuesday, August 31
Members of CODEPINK and others gathered in front of Fox News Channel's headquarters in New York City and held a "Fox News Shut-Up-A-Thon." About 1,000 people protested the network, complaining about lack of balance and deriding it as a propaganda arm of the Republican Party.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Tuesday, August 31
Most of the protesters from the War Resisters League didn't get very far from the World Trade Center on their 3-mile procession to the RNC convention at Madison Square Garden. They crossed one block and 227 of them were instantly surrounded by police and arrested. The several hundred remaining in the WRL contingent proceeded up a different route and got closer to the convention, and did a "die-in" in the street where 54 more were arrested.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Protest from within the convention
Throughout the convention, there were several protesters who were able to sneak into Madison Square Garden and disrupt the speakers at the podium. Some even described it as surprisingly easy. Anti -war activists from CODEPINK disrupted primetime addresses three nights in a row and twice during George W. Bush's acceptance speech. The father of one of the first U.S. servicemen killed in Iraq was ejected after holding up a sign that read "Bush Lied. My Son Died."


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Protest from within the convention
Eleven AIDS activists from ACT UP also infiltrated the convention center during the Republican Youth Convention, chanting anti-Bush slogans and disrupting the event. One female protester holding a sign was subdued by security, and alleged that she was kicked by a member of the Young Republicans while she was on the ground. Video of this event was shot by a local news station, but it proved to be inconclusive, because while it showed the Republican making kicking motions, it didn't show that any contact was made.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Protest from within the convention
News of the alleged attack spread through the blogosphere, leading a website to identify a person who they believed was the alleged attacker. The female protester who was kicked then came forward and said she would consider pressing charges; however, she later decided that it was more worthwhile to expend her energy fighting AIDS. The identity of the alleged attacker has not been conclusively confirmed. The eleven ACT UP protesters were charged with disorderly conduct, 2nd and 3rd degree assault, and inciting a riot (1 violation, 1 misdemeanor, and 2 felonies), although all of the charges were dropped. A twelfth individual, not associated with ACT UP, was also arrested with them for taking pictures of the action.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Controversial police tactics
Concerns have been raised about police tactics in arresting nonviolent protesters with many apparently innocent people being swept up in mass arrests. For instance, a lawyer, along with 1,000 other people, was detained in a facility by the New York City Police Department in such conditions that he said that the city had created its "own little Guantanamo on the Hudson", referring to the tortures reported in prisoners camps in Guantanamo Bay. The police closed a street adjoining Union Square where protesters were marching, arresting protesters and bystanders alike. People were required to show identification cards or face arrest; the arrested people were not immediately informed of charges against them.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Controversial police tactics
The facility was the then-recently closed Hudson Pier Depot at Pier 57 on the Hudson River, a three-story, block-long pier that has been converted into a temporary prison, though unfit for detention of prisoners. Arrested protesters have complained about extremely poor conditions describing it as overcrowded, dirty, and contaminated with oil and asbestos. People reported having suffered from smell, bad ventilation, and even chemical burns and rashes.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Controversial police tactics
On May 17, 2006 Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now!, reported on the FBI launch of a criminal civil rights investigation of NYPD after Gulf War veteran Dennis Kyne went to trial and had all charges dropped due to video evidence showing the police falsified reports and sworn testimony.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Controversial police tactics
In 2014, the city settled the lawsuits. $6.4 million was paid to 430 individual plaintiffs. $6.6 million was paid to settle a class-action lawsuit filed by 1,200 additional people. The legal fees were $5 million. The city did not admit any wrongdoing. One of the plaintiffs, artist Constantina Zavistanos, has incorporated her settlement into the art work "Sweepstakes" where viewers are given a portion of the settlement.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Controversial police tactics
The New York Times has also reported on two occasions that the police videotaped and infiltrated protests, as well as acting as agents provocateurs during the protests. In addition, the New York Times reported that prior to the protests, NYPD officers traveled as far away as Europe and spied on people there who planned to protest at the RNC.


2004 Republican National Convention protest activity, Controversial police tactics
The City reportedly refused to release the prisoners until a judge threatened to fine it for every extra hour every prisoner would spend in prison. The victims of the arrests have filed lawsuits against the City of New York. Several cases have since gone to court, and it has come out that the charges of resisting arrest in those cases were completely fabricated. Video evidence was shown of defendants complying peaceably with police demands. Many of the cases have since been summarily dismissed. Some of them, as of 2011, however, remain open and are expected to proceed to trial.


2004 Republican Party presidential primaries
From January 19 to June 8, 2004, voters of the Republican Party chose its nominee for president in the 2004 United States presidential election. Incumbent President George W. Bush was again selected as the nominee through a series of primary elections and caucuses culminating in the 2004 Republican National Convention held from August 30 to September 2, 2004, in New York City.


2004 Republican Party presidential primaries, Primary race overview
Incumbent President George W. Bush announced in mid-2003 that he would campaign for re-election; he faced no major challengers. He then went on, throughout early 2004, to win every nomination contest, including a sweep of Super Tuesday, beating back the vacuum of challengers and maintaining the recent tradition of an easy primary for incumbent Presidents (the last time an incumbent was seriously challenged in a presidential primary contest was when Senator Ted Kennedy challenged Jimmy Carter for the Democratic nomination in 1980). Bush managed to raise US$130 million in 2003 alone, and expected to set a national primary fund-raising record of $200 million by the time of the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York City.


2004 Republican Party presidential primaries, Primary race overview
Several states and territories canceled their respective Republican primaries altogether, citing Bush being the only candidate to qualify on their respective ballot, including Connecticut, Florida, Mississippi, New York, Puerto Rico, and South Dakota.


2004 Republican Party presidential primaries, Primary race overview
Senator Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, an opponent of the war in Iraq, Bush's tax cuts, drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and much of Bush's social agenda, considered challenging Bush in the New Hampshire primary in the fall of 2003. He decided not to run, after the capture of Saddam Hussein in December 2003. He would later change his party affiliation to Democratic and run in that party's 2016 presidential primaries.


2004 Republican Party presidential primaries, Candidates, Challengers, On the ballot in one primary
All but one of the following were on the ballot only in the state of New Hampshire.


2004 Republican Party presidential primaries, Candidates, Challengers, On the ballot in one primary
Retired engineer Jack Fellure of West Virginia got 14 votes in the North Dakota Caucases


2004 Republican Party presidential primaries, Results
There were 2,509 total delegates to the 2004 Republican National Convention, of which 650 were so-called "superdelegates" who were not bound by any particular state's primary or caucus votes and could change their votes at any time. A candidate needs 1,255 delegates to become the nominee. Except for the Northern Mariana Islands and Midway Atoll, all states, territories, and other inhabited areas of the United States offer delegates to the 2004 Republican National Convention.


2004 Rhein Fire season
The 2004 Rhein Fire season was the tenth season for the franchise in the NFL Europe League (NFLEL). The team was led by head coach Pete Kuharchek in his fourth year, and played its home games at Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. They finished the regular season in fifth place with a record of three wins and seven losses.


2004 Rhode Island Democratic presidential primary
The 2004 Rhode Island Democratic presidential primary was held on March 2 in the U.S. state of Rhode Island as one of the Democratic Party's statewide nomination contests ahead of the 2004 presidential election.


2004 Rhode Island Rams football team
The 2004 Rhode Island Rams football team was an American football team that represented the University of Rhode Island in the Atlantic 10 Conference during the 2004 NCAA Division I-AA football season. In their fifth season under head coach Tim Stowers, the Rams compiled a 4–7 record (2–6 against conference opponents) and finished fourth in the North Division of the Atlantic 10 Conference.


2004 Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council election
The third election to Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council was held in June 2004. It was preceded by the 1999 election and followed by the 2008 election. On the same day there were elections to  the other 21 local authorities in Wales and community councils in Wales and the first elections to the National Assembly for Wales were held.


2004 Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council election, Overview
All 75 council seats were up for election. Labour regained control of the authority from Plaid Cymru.


2004 Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council election, Ward Results, Cwm Clydach (one seat)
Roberts had been elected as a Plaid Cymru candidate but subsequently joined the Liberal Democrats.


2004 Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council election, Ward Results, Penygraig (two seats)
Davies had been elected as a Plaid Cymru candidate in 1999.


2004 Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council election, Ward Results, Rhigos (one seat)
The sitting Plaid Cymru member had been returned unopposed in 1999.


2004 Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council election, Ward Results, Tonypandy (one seat)
The retiring member had defected from Plaid Cymru to the Liberal Democrats since 1999.


2004 Rhône-Alpes regional election
A regional election took place in Rhône-Alpes on March 21 and March 28, 2004, along with all other regions. Jean-Jack Queyranne (PS) was elected president, defeating the incumbent Anne-Marie Comparini (UDF).


2004 Rice Owls football team
The 2004 Rice Owls football team represented Rice University in the 2004 NCAA Division I-A college football season. The Owls, led by head coach Ken Hatfield, played their home games at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas.


2004 Richmond Spiders football team
The 2004 Richmond Spiders football team represented the University of Richmond during the 2004 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Richmond competed as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10), and played their home games at the University of Richmond Stadium.


2004 Richmond Spiders football team
The Spiders were led by first-year head coach Dave Clawson, who was previously head coach at Fordham University. Richmond finished the regular season with a 3–8 overall record and 2–6 record in conference play.


2004 Rink Hockey Men's B World Championship
The 2004 Rink Hockey Men's B World Championship was the 36th edition of the Rink Hockey B World Championship, held from October 16 to 23, in Macau.


2004 Rink Hockey Men's B World Championship
The champion was Catalonia, that had obtained a FIRS provisional membership few months before the tournament. However, FIRS did not endorse final acceptance of Catalonia for subsequent editions.


2004 Rink Hockey Men's B World Championship, Format
Competition's schedule included 11 countries, divided in two groups, but North Korea withdrew a few days before the opening.


2004 Rio de Janeiro motorcycle Grand Prix
The 2004 Rio de Janeiro motorcycle Grand Prix was the seventh round of the 2004 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 2–4 July 2004 at Autódromo Internacional Nelson Piquet.


2004 Rio de Janeiro motorcycle Grand Prix, Championship standings after the race (motoGP)
Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round seven has concluded.


2004 Road America 500
The 2004 Road America 500 was the seventh race for the 2004 American Le Mans Series season. It took place on August 22, 2004.


2004 Road America 500, Official results
Class winners in bold. Cars failing to complete 70% of winner's distance marked as Not Classified (NC).


2004 Road America 500, Official results
† - #30 was disqualified for receiving outside assistance on the race course.


2004 Roanoke tornado
On July 13, 2004, a powerful F4 tornado that formed outside of Roanoke, a small town in central Illinois. It is best known for the numerous videos and pictures taken of it as well as the complete destruction of the Parsons Manufacturing plant. Despite, the damage, there were only three minor injuries and no fatalities. It was one of six tornadoes to touch down on this day.


2004 Roanoke tornado, Description
On Tuesday, July 13, 2004, at about 2:30 p.m., a tornado with a maximum reported width of a quarter mile (0.4 km) struck west of the village of Roanoke, damaging much of the area and cutting power to the main town of Roanoke for three days. Based on the extreme damage, the tornado was classified as a violent F4 on the Fujita scale by the National Weather Service. The tornado started approximately 1.8 miles (3 km) north of Metamora, located eight miles (12.8 km) west of Roanoke, and lifted approximately 2.5 miles (4 km) southeast of Roanoke. The tornado moved roughly southeasterly for a distance of 9.6 miles (15.4 kilometers) over about 25 minutes.


2004 Roanoke tornado, Description, Damage
The worst damage occurred at the Parsons Company manufacturing plant, a parts supplier for Caterpillar Inc., which was leveled, losing its roof and outer walls. Although about 140 people were inside the building when the tornado struck, there were no fatalities and only a few minor injuries. This was attributed to preparations made during the construction of the plant and spotter training given to some of the workers. Although no tornado sirens were heard at the plant before the tornado struck, an alarm sounded by one of the spotters allowed all the workers to move to storm shelters and ride out the storm.


2004 Roanoke tornado, Description, Damage
Large steel beams from the Parsons plant were blown approximately 3/4-mile (1.2 km) away, and many of the employees' cars tossed into nearby cornfields. Three neighboring farmsteads were completely swept away, with only debris remaining in the basements. Trees were debarked, and farm machinery was thrown and mangled.


2004 Roanoke tornado, Aftermath & Impact
The storm was an example of how structural planning, storm spotting, and awareness techniques can be used by companies. The plant owner's decision to include storm shelters in the building's design likely saved the lives of many employees. Just as important, the early notice provided by the company storm-spotters allowed employees to reach the shelters before the storm struck. The Parsons plant reopened in April 2005 with seven tornado shelters, five more than the original plant.


2004 Roanoke tornado, Aftermath & Impact
Two local residents chased the tornado for much of its 23-minute duration. They produced a half-hour-long video that was sold in the Peoria area to help raise funds for employees of the Parsons plant, most of whom had lost their cars and were either underinsured or not insured.


2004 Roanoke tornado, Aftermath & Impact
The Roanoke tornado was the most significant tornado of a small tornado outbreak which transitioned into a destructive derecho over an extensive area of the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys extending to the Gulf of Mexico. The outbreak produced three other tornadoes, all rated F0. The Roanoke 2004 Tornado was featured on The Weather Channel's Storm Stories and Full Force Nature.


2004 Roanoke tornado, Aftermath & Impact
The Parsons plant would come very close to being destroyed again during the Washington, IL Tornado on November 17, 2013, however, that tornado passed just northwest of the plant.


2004 Robert Morris Colonials football team
The 2004 Robert Morris Colonials football team represented Robert Morris University as a member of the Northeast Conference (NEC) during the 2004 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Colonials were led by 11th-year head coach Joe Walton and played their home games at Moon Stadium on the campus of Moon Area High School.


2004 Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council election
Elections to Rochdale Council were held on 10 June 2004. The whole council was up for election with boundary changes since the last election in 2003. The council stayed under no overall control.


2004 Rochford District Council election
Elections to Rochford Council were held on 10 June 2004. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative party stayed in overall control of the council.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season
Roger Federer won three Majors in 2004. The first came at the Australian Open over Marat Safin, 7–6(3), 6–4, 6–2. He went on to win his second Wimbledon crown over Andy Roddick, 4–6, 7–5, 7–6(3), 6–4. In addition, Federer defeated the 2001 US Open Champion Lleyton Hewitt at the US Open for his first US Open title, 6–0, 7–6(3), 6–0. Furthermore, Federer won three ATP Masters 1000 events, one on clay at Hamburg, and two on hard court in Indian Wells and Canada. Federer took the ATP 500 series event at Dubai, and wrapped up the year for the second time over Lleyton Hewitt at the Tennis Masters Cup. Federer was the first player to win three Grand Slams in a single season since Mats Wilander in 1988.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season
Federer became the first man in the Open Era to win at least three Grand Slams and the Year-End Championships. As of 2021, Federer and Novak Djokovic are the only male tennis players to accomplish this, with Federer repeating the feat in 2006 and 2007 and Djokovic doing so in 2015.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary
In 2004, Federer had one of the most dominating and successful years in the open era of modern men's tennis. He won three of the four Grand Slam singles tournaments, did not lose a match to anyone ranked in the top 10, won every final he reached, and was named the ITF Tennis World Champion. His win–loss record for the year was 74–6 with 11 titles, which included three of the year's four Grand Slams and three ATP Masters Series titles.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Early hard court season
Federer entered the 2004 Australian Open as the second seed behind American Andy Roddick. In the fourth round he rallied to defeat former number one and native son Lleyton Hewitt after dropping the first set. His nemesis David Nalbandian, who had won five of their six previous meetings, awaited him in the quarterfinals. Federer managed to dispatch the Argentine in four tight sets. The semifinals proved easier as Federer crunched world no. 3 Juan Carlos Ferrero and reached his first Australian Open final. His opponent in the final was former world no. 1 and 2000 US Open champion Marat Safin.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Early hard court season
After winning the opening set in a tiebreaker Federer secured a 7–6, 6–4, 6–2 championship win. This victory delivered him his first Australian Open and his second career Grand Slam. This win also saw him supplant Roddick as the world no. 1 on 2 February 2004, a ranking he would hold for an all-time record 237 consecutive weeks until 18 August 2008.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Early hard court season
Federer's momentum was temporarily halted when he was defeated at the Rotterdam Open by Tim Henman.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Early hard court season
Federer quickly rebounded in March, when he won the Dubai Tennis Championships, defeating Marat Safin in the first round and Spanish player Feliciano López in the final.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Early hard court season
The next stop on the calendar was the masters tournament in Indian Wells, California. Federer entered Indian Wells looking to claim his first masters title since 2002 Hamburg Masters. Federer had not dropped a set going into the semifinals where he played American legend Andre Agassi. Agassi won the first set, but Federer rallied to win a spot in the finals for the first time in Indian Wells. He seized the opportunity at the 2004 Pacific Life Open, defeating Tim Henman in straight sets to win the title.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Early hard court season
2004 also marked the year where he first met teenager and future arch-rival Rafael Nadal, who defeated Federer in their first encounter in Miami.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Clay court season
Federer skipped Monte Carlo and decided to begin his clay season at the Rome Masters. He was, however, upset in the second round by 2002 French Open champion Albert Costa.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Clay court season
Federer next played the Hamburg Masters. He defeated former number 1 players Carlos Moyá and Lleyton Hewitt in the quarterfinals and semifinals respectively. He then defeated world number 3 Guillermo Coria in the final to claim his second title in Hamburg and end Coria's longest winning streak of 31 consecutive matches on clay.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Clay court season
He entered the French Open as top seed for the first time ever at a Grand Slam, but was defeated in the third round by former world number 1 and three-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Grass court season
Federer entered Halle as the defending champion and quickly solidified his status as the premier grass court player of his generation. He did not drop a set for the entire tournament and convincingly defeated American Mardy Fish in the final by the score of 6–0, 6–3.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Grass court season
After his victory in the grass tuneup at Halle, Federer entered the Wimbledon Championships as the defending champion. Federer was aiming to be the first man to defend his title at Wimbledon since Pete Sampras (1999–2000). The Swiss dropped only one set as he made his way through the tournament and reached the final. He played world number 2 Andy Roddick for the championship in a thrilling four set final. Roddick came out strong with incredible serving and took the first set.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Grass court season
The second set began with Federer racing out to a 4–0 lead, but Roddick rallied to level it at 4–4. Federer ultimately broke Roddick in the twelfth game and leveled the match at one set apiece. The pivotal third set was decided by a tiebreaker which was won by the Swiss defending champion. Federer closed out the match in four sets to win his third career Grand Slam.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Summer hard court season
Federer's first tournament after Wimbledon was the Swiss Open at Gstaad. This was a clay court tournament that Federer played because it was a major tournament in his native Switzerland. He had played Gstaad every year between 1998–2003 but had never managed to emerge victorious. That changed in 2004 when Federer defeated Igor Andreev to win a tournament in Switzerland for the first time in his career.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Summer hard court season
Federer then won the Canada Masters in Toronto where he defeated Andy Roddick in the finals 7–5, 6–3. This was his fourth Masters championship and his first in Canada.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Summer hard court season
His 23 match winning streak ended surprisingly in the first round of the Cincinnati Masters where Federer was upset by Slovakian Dominik Hrbaty.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Summer hard court season
Federer entered the Athens Olympics as the top-seeded player and was considered the overwhelming favorite, but he was upset in the second round by Czech teenager and future world number 4 Tomáš Berdych. This would be the last loss Federer would suffer for the remainder of his 2004 season.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Summer hard court season
Federer entered the 2004 US Open as the top seed looking to win his first US Open championship. Federer cruised through the first four rounds before facing Andre Agassi in the quarterfinals. His match against the two time US Open champion proved to be a thrilling five set epic. After splitting the first two sets the third set went to 5–5 before Federer broke and took a two set to one advantage. Agassi would take the fourth but Federer claimed the fifth and decisive set. In the semifinals Federer eased past former nemesis Tim Henman in straight sets. Federer won his first US Open singles title, defeating Lleyton Hewitt, 6–0, 7–6(3), 6–0, in the final. This was one of the most dominant displays in US Open history as Federer was the first player to win two bagel sets in the final since 1884.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Fall hard court season
Federer began his fall campaign at the Thailand Open. He survived a three set scare against local favorite Paradorn Srichaphan and faced world no. 2 Andy Roddick in the finals. He easily dispatched the American 6–4, 6–0. This was his twelfth consecutive victory in a tournament final which tied the all-time record of Björn Borg and John McEnroe. This victory marked Federer's tenth title of 2004.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Fall hard court season
Federer skipped the Madrid Masters in order to focus on winning his hometown tournament of the Swiss Indoors in Basel for the first time. However, just before the start of Basel, Federer suffered a muscle fiber rupture in his left thigh and was forced to withdraw. This injury also kept him out of the Paris Masters.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Fall hard court season
He returned after six weeks out of action at the Tennis Masters Cup in Houston. Federer was honored as the top seed by having lunch with former President George H.W. Bush. He was the defending champion at the Year-End Championships and was placed during the round robin stage in the Red Group. The Red Group consisted of former no. 1 players Carlos Moyá and Lleyton Hewitt as well as reigning French Open champion Gastón Gaudio. He won all three round robin matches, taking six of seven sets, and faced Marat Safin in the semifinals.


2004 Roger Federer tennis season, Year summary, Fall hard court season
Federer won the first set, but the second set turned into a historic marathon tiebreaker. The tiebreaker was won by Federer by a score of 20–18 and lasted 27 minutes. The 38 points equalled the longest tie-break in tennis history along with Borg-Lall at 1973 Wimbledon and Ivanisevic-Nestor at 1993 US Open. Federer next faced Lleyton Hewitt in the finals for the sixth time that season and won the championship match 6–3, 6–2. This victory was his thirteenth consecutive victory in a tournament final which broke the record he had shared with Borg and McEnroe.