Christa Luding of Germany at the Olympic Games in Albertville, France. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Quiz | Easy as Sunday morning: On the Olympics
Norma Enriqueta Basilio of Mexico, the first woman to light the Olympic flame in the history of the modern Olympic Games, climbs 90 steps with the Olympic torch during the opening ceremony in Mexico on October 12, 1968.
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1 / 10 | On this day in 1894 the International Olympic Committee was founded in Paris. On the initiative of Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who believed that organised sports could instill moral and social strength, the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896. At the 1912 Games in Sweden, Coubertin himself won a gold medal for his effort ‘Ode to Sport’. He won the medal in which now-defunct category?
2 / 10 | Born on this day in 1877, Norman Pritchard was a hurdler who won two silver medals at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. Earlier, while studying at St Xavier’s College in Calcutta, he scored the first football hat-trick on record. When Neeraj Chopra won the gold medal in javelin throw at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, he surpassed Pritchard’s record in athletics. What was his record?
Answer: The only Indian to win a medal in athletics in the Summer Olympics
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3/10 | Born on this day in 1912, this English computer scientist loved running. He once said, “I have such a stressful job that the only way I can get it off my mind is by running hard; that’s the only way I get some relief.” He almost qualified for the 1948 Olympics but suffered a leg injury. Who was this runner whose work with the Enigma machine played a huge role in ending World War II?
4/10 | Born on this day in 1972, Zinedine Zidane is a French footballer who is also one of the most successful coaches. He led the French team to the trophy at the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Although he has never played in the Olympics, he did make a cameo appearance as ‘Numerodis’ in the 2008 live action film of the comic book ______ at the Olympic Games. Fill in the blank with another French icon.
5/10 | Christa Luding-Rothenberger is a German athlete who won a gold medal in the 500m speed skating at the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics. At the next Olympics in Calgary four years later, she won a gold medal in the 1000m. In the gap between the two, she was persuaded by her coach to take up cycling and she made such good progress that she represented East Germany in cycling at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, where she won a silver medal. What unique record does Christa hold that can never be repeated?
Answer: Won medals in both Winter and Summer Olympics in the same year
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6/10 | At the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics, the men’s pole vault event ended in a three-way tie for second place. After American Bill Sefton was eliminated in the jump-off, the two remaining athletes, both Japanese, refused to compete further. Officials selected one of them as the silver medalist and the other as the bronze medalist. What did these two friends do with their medals after the Games (in true friendship fashion)?
Answer: Cut them both in half and then join them to make two half silver and half bronze medals.
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7/10 | During the Olympic torch’s journey at the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics, one location required a special flare carrier that contained a mixture of oxygen-producing chemicals as well as magnesium in a finely powdered form. This kept the torch burning at 2,000 degrees Celsius and created so much pressure that even surrounding water could not enter the tube. This was done so that the torch could be carried through which iconic location?
Answer: Great Barrier Reef (underwater)
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8/10 | It was to travel from Athens to Paris as part of the Olympic torch’s journey for the 1992 Albertville Olympics. During this journey, it travelled faster than the speed of sound for the first time. What was its mode of transport?
9/10 | This sport was contested as a team event at the Summer Olympics from 1900 to 1920. Teams consisted of six members, and Great Britain has won five medals. It is the only land sport in which you have to go backwards to win. What is this sport that you mostly see at fun events and company outings these days?
10 / 10 | The original Olympic motto Citius, Altius, Fortius (Latin for faster, higher, stronger) was proposed by Pierre de Coubertin in 1894 when the International Olympic Committee was created. Since then, this year will be the first time the updated motto will be used. Now, “Citius, Altius, Fortius – Communiter”, what does it mean?
Answer: Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together
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