Timeline March 2020

Events in March 2020 11

• 1929 – 2020 Max von Sydow (1929-2020) Died 8 March 2020, aged 90 Max von Sydow was a Swedish actor renowned for his collaborations with director Ingmar Bergman, including The Seventh Seal, and later roles in The Exorcist and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. He died on 8 March 2020.
• 1938 – 2020 Bill Withers (1938-2020) Died 30 March 2020, aged 81 Bill Withers was an American soul singer-songwriter behind classics including "Lean on Me," "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Lovely Day." He died of heart complications on 30 March 2020.
• 1938 – 2020 Kenny Rogers (1938-2020) Died 20 March 2020, aged 81 Kenny Rogers was an American country singer known for hits including "The Gambler" and "Islands in the Stream," selling over 100 million records worldwide. He died at home on 20 March 2020.
• 2020 Prince Harry and Meghan step back as senior royals Sussexes announce departure from official royal duties The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced on 8 January 2020 that they would step back as senior members of the British royal family and pursue financial independence. The move, dubbed "Megxit" in the press, took effect on 31 March 2020 and led them to relocate to North America.
• 2020 COVID-19 — IKEA closes stores, e-commerce explodes COVID-19 forces IKEA to close all its stores globally in March 2020 — the first time in its history that IKEA's physical retail model has been completely disrupted. Online sales surge: IKEA.com visits grow 45% and e-commerce sales double in 2020. The pandemic accelerates IKEA's digital transformation by years. When stores reopen, IKEA accelerates investment in smaller urban formats, same-day delivery and online room planning tools. The pandemic reveals both the resilience of IKEA's brand and the limitations of its large-store, drive-to retail model.
• 2020 Iditarod 2020 Winner: Thomas Wærner — 9 days 10h Norwegian Thomas Wærner won the 2020 Iditarod, which finished just as COVID-19 lockdowns began across the world.
• 2020 Led Zeppelin win the Stairway to Heaven copyright case Appeals court A US appeals court rules Stairway did not copy Spirit's Taurus.
• 2020 COVID-19 pandemic declared WHO declares global pandemic The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic on March 11, 2020. The disease, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, had spread to over 100 countries.
• 2020 NBA season suspended over coronavirus League halts play after Rudy Gobert tests positive The NBA suspended its season indefinitely on 11 March 2020 after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19, becoming one of the first major US sports leagues to shut down. Play resumed in July inside a quarantined "bubble" at Walt Disney World.
• 2020 Tiger King becomes a pandemic cultural phenomenon Netflix docuseries about big-cat breeders grips locked-down viewers Netflix's docuseries Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, following exotic animal breeder Joe Exotic, premiered on 20 March 2020 just as much of the world entered lockdown. It became a runaway pop-culture sensation, drawing tens of millions of viewers in its first weeks.
• 2020 Tokyo Olympics postponed 2020 Games delayed a year over pandemic The IOC and Japanese organizers announced on 24 March 2020 that the Tokyo Summer Olympics would be postponed to 2021, the first peacetime postponement in the Games' modern history. The event was eventually held in July-August 2021 without spectators.