Timeline Sunday 13 July 2014

Events on Sunday 13 July 2014 4

• 1923 – 2014 Nadine Gordimer (1923-2014) Died 13 July 2014, aged 90 Nadine Gordimer, the South African novelist and Nobel laureate who chronicled the moral struggles of apartheid, died in Johannesburg. Several of her books were banned by the apartheid government during her lifetime. She remained an outspoken political and social commentator after the end of apartheid.
• 2014 2014 FIFA World Cup German Dominance Germany became the first European team to win a World Cup in the Americas. Winner: Germany.
• 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Germany defeats Brazil 7-1 in semi-final The 2014 FIFA World Cup was held in Brazil. Germany humiliated host nation Brazil 7-1 in the semi-final before beating Argentina 1-0 in the final to win their fourth World Cup.
• 2014 Coming out -- the Parkinson interview, July 2014 On 13 July 2014, in a television interview with British talk-show host Michael Parkinson broadcast on Australia's Channel 10, Ian Thorpe publicly confirms for the first time that he is gay. He is 31 years old. The interview is one of the most watched television events in Australian sporting history. Thorpe explains the long denial: he was first asked about his sexuality by a journalist when he was a teenager, too young to know his own answer; he said he was straight to avoid teasing from classmates; the lie then became too large to correct without appearing to have lied about everything. "I felt the lie had become so big that I didn't want people to question my integrity," he says. "I'm comfortable saying I'm a gay man." He adds that he wishes he had come out sooner.