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OLYMPICS TRIVIA

1) An Olympic gold medal is made mostly of what metal?


The last Olympic medal that was actually solid gold was awarded in 1912. Today, "gold" medals are 92.5% silver.

2) What is the Olympic motto?


The Olympic motto is "Citius, Altius, Fortius", which is Latin for "Faster, Higher, Stronger". It was proposed by Pierre de Coubertin upon the creation of the International Olympic Committee in 1894.

3) What country boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics?


The United States boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

4) What black Olympian has been credited with "single-handedly crushing Hitler's myth of Aryan supremacy"?


Owens' success at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin was an unpleasant surprise for Adolf Hitler, who had hoped the games would showcase a resurgent Nazi Germany. Instead, Owens was the most successful athlete, winning international fame with four gold medals: 100 meters, 200 meters, long jump, and 4x100 meter relay.

5) Which of these animals were used in the 1900 Olympics?


While competitors typically shot at disc-shaped targets called clay pigeons, the 1900 Games in Paris featured livelier targets--real pigeons.

6) Hans-Gunnar Liljenwall was the first Olympic athlete to be disqualified for drug use. Which banned substance did he consume?


Liljenwall reportedly had "two beers" to calm his nerves before the pistol shooting event. As a result, the entire Swedish team was disqualified.

7) How old was the oldest Olympic medal winner?


During the 1920 Summer Olympics, Swedish shooter Oscar Swahn won a silver medal in the double shot running deer contest. He was 72 years old.

8) The longest wrestling match in Olympic history lasted how many hours?


In the wrestling semifinal of the 1912 Summer Olympics, Martin Klein and Alfred Asikainen grappled for 11 hours and 40 minutes before Klein finally managed to pin Asikainen. Klein was so exhausted from the bout that he was unable to wrestle for the gold the next day, leaving Swedish wrestler Claes Johansson with the gold medal.

9) Which athletes enter last in the Parade of Nations at the opening ceremony?


The first team to enter the stadium is always Greece, in honor of the fact that the Olympics has its origin in ancient Greece. The last team is the host country.

10) Why did Bobby Pearce slow down during his rowing race at the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam?


In the quarter final he was easily beating French opponent Saurin when a family of ducks strayed into his lane. Pearce momentarily stopped rowing to let the ducks pass; he still won with the fastest time of all 8 competitors in that round.

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