December 2004 in Sports - December 5, 2004

December 5, 2004

• Biathlon: At the last day of WC 1 at Beitostølen, Norway, the women's 4×6 km Relay is won by Russia, finishing 11 seconds before runner-up Germany, and one minute before France. (IBU/EBU Results) In the men's 4×7.5 km Relay, Norway wins by a large margin, almost one minute and a half before Germany's team, who in turn is followed 13 seconds later by Russia. (IBU/EBU Results)
• Cricket:
  • England beat Zimbabwe by 74 runs in the fourth One Day International at Bulawayo, Zimbabwe to win the 4 match series 4–0. Zimbabwe have now lost 17 games in a row.(Cricinfo)
  • New Zealand beat Australia by 4 wickets with 2 balls remaining in the first One Day International match at the Docklands (Telstra Dome) ground in Melbourne, Australia to lead the 3 match series 1–0. (Cricinfo)
• Cross-country skiing: On the final day of the week's World Cup event in Bern, Switzerland, the Ladies' 6×1.1 km free technique Team Sprint race is won by Norway I, followed closely by Germany I, and with Italy I coming in 3rd, 2.5 seconds behind the Germans. (FIS-Ski Results) In the Men's race, Russia I finishes first, 0.3 seconds ahead of Norway I, who comes in a half-second before Italy I. (FIS-Ski Results)
• NCAA football: The matchups for the four BCS bowls are announced:
  • Orange Bowl (national championship): USC vs Oklahoma.
  • Rose Bowl: Michigan vs Texas. This breaks the traditional Big 10–Pac-10 matchup.
  • Fiesta Bowl: Pittsburgh vs Utah. Utah becomes the first team from a mid-major conference to play in a BCS bowl.
  • Sugar Bowl: Virginia Tech vs Auburn. (AP)
• NFL, Week 13:
  • Jake Plummer of the Denver Broncos throws four interceptions in a 20–17 loss to the San Diego Chargers. The loss nearly assures an AFC West division title for San Diego.
  • Donovan McNabb throws five touchdown passes to lead the Philadelphia Eagles to a 47–17 win over the Green Bay Packers. Brett Favre's streak of 36 consecutive games with a touchdown pass is snapped. (AP)
  • The Cincinnati Bengals beat a winning team on the road for the first time in 14 years. Shayne Graham's last-second 24-yard field goal capped a 24-point fourth-quarter comeback as the Bengals defeat the Baltimore Ravens 27–26. (AP)
  • Peyton Manning throws three touchdown passes and Rob Morris returns a blocked field goal attempt for a touchdown as the Indianapolis Colts beat the Tennessee Titans 51–24. (AP)
  • Terrence McGee of the Buffalo Bills returns the opening kickoff 104 yards for a touchdown in a 42–32 win over the Miami Dolphins. (AP)
  • Bethel Johnson of the New England Patriots also returns an opening kickoff for the touchdown, Randall Gay returns a fumble for a score, Corey Dillon rushes for two touchdowns and Tom Brady passes for one in a 42–15 win over the Cleveland Browns. (AP)
  • The Tampa Bay Buccaneers upset the Atlanta Falcons, preventing them from clinching the NFC South title this week. Simeon Rice of the Bucs becomes just the 22nd player in NFL history to reach 100 quarterback sacks. (ESPN)
  • The Chicago Bears upset the Minnesota Vikings, 24–14. It is the first start in a Bears uniform for quarterback Chad Hutchinson. Vikings quarterback Daunte Culpepper was intercepted three times. (ESPN)
• Boxing: The WBC announces it will organize tournaments around the world, to crown one world champion in each division, from each continent. According to the release sent by WBC president José Sulaimán, this will be done as an effort to honor every continent that has had a world boxing champion.(Boxing Central)
  • Rydell Booker, a Cruiserweight contender who lost to James Toney earlier on the year, is convicted on charges of possessing cocaine.(Boxing Central)
• Field hockey: India lose 4–5 to defending champions Netherlands in their second defeat in a row in the Champions Trophy hockey tournament in Lahore, Pakistan. (Indian Express) (Deccan Herald)