Timeline July 1976

Events in July 1976 11

• 1976 Wimbledon 1976 Men: Björn Borg · Women: Chris Evert Borg began his five consecutive Wimbledon titles.
• 1976 Socialist Republic of Vietnam proclaimed North and South Vietnam formally reunify On 2 July 1976 North and South Vietnam were formally merged into the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, with Hanoi as the capital, a year after the fall of Saigon ended the Vietnam War. The reunification completed decades of conflict and division dating back to French colonial rule. Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, was renamed in honour of the late revolutionary leader.
• 1976 Entebbe raid Israeli commandos rescue hijacked hostages in Uganda On 4 July 1976 Israeli special forces raided Entebbe Airport in Uganda to free more than 100 hostages held by pro-Palestinian hijackers aboard an Air France flight. The operation killed the hijackers, several Ugandan soldiers and one Israeli commando, Yonatan Netanyahu. The raid became one of the most celebrated hostage-rescue operations in modern history.
• 1976 The Clash play their first gig Sheffield Supporting the Sex Pistols at the Black Swan in Sheffield.
• 1976 United States Bicentennial United States marks 200 years of independence On 4 July 1976 the United States celebrated the two-hundredth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with nationwide festivities, including a parade of tall ships in New York Harbor. The Bicentennial was marked by fireworks, concerts and civic ceremonies across the country. It served as a moment of national reflection after the Vietnam War and Watergate.
• 1976 1976 Summer Olympics XXI Olympiad - Montreal Nadia Comăneci scored the first perfect 10. Winner: Soviet Union.
• 1976 Viking 1 lands on Mars First successful Mars landing NASA's Viking 1 spacecraft successfully landed on Mars on July 20, 1976 — the seventh anniversary of the Moon landing — becoming the first spacecraft to successfully operate on the Martian surface.
• 1976 Viking 1 lands on Mars NASA probe becomes first American spacecraft to land on Mars NASA's Viking 1 lander touched down on the surface of Mars on 20 July 1976, becoming the first American spacecraft to successfully land on another planet. It transmitted the first close-up photographs from the Martian surface and conducted experiments searching for signs of life. The lander operated for over six years before contact was lost.
• 1976 Legionnaires' disease outbreak Mystery pneumonia outbreak strikes Philadelphia convention In late July 1976 an outbreak of severe pneumonia among attendees of an American Legion convention in Philadelphia killed 34 people and sickened over 180. The cause was traced months later to a previously unknown bacterium, subsequently named Legionella, spreading through the hotel's air conditioning system. The event gave the disease its common name, Legionnaires' disease.
• 1976 – present Judit Polgár Strongest female chess player in history Judit Polgár defeated numerous world champions and became the highest-rated female player ever, transforming perceptions of women in chess.
• 1976 Tangshan earthquake 250,000+ killed in China The Tangshan earthquake struck China on July 28, 1976, killing an estimated 242,000–655,000 people — one of the deadliest earthquakes of the 20th century.