How well do you know the Olympics? Test your knowledge with our quiz

For many sports fans, the Olympics is one of the greatest two weeks in the sporting calendar, for other, more casual fans, they may suddenly find themselves addicted to any of the wonderful sports on offer. Whatever sort of fan you are, why not test your Olympic knowledge in our 15-question quiz? Let us know how you got on in the comments!

A) Live pigeon shooting

B) 10-pin bowling

C) Hair clipping

Live pigeon shooting was an event at the 1900 Olympics in Paris, according to TopEnd Sports. Over 300 pigeons were killed in what amounted to a bird massacre. Fortunately for our feathered friends, clay “pigeons” were used from then on.

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A) 18

B) 23

C) 31

Phelps’ dominance in his chosen sport of swimming cannot be understated, with the American winning 23 gold medals during his career. Swimmers do have the advantage of being able to participate in numerous events, but that shouldn’t take anything away from Phelps’ incredible performances.

A) 1896

B) 1888

C) 1900

The modern Olympics began in 1896 with Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin forming the International Olympic Committee to revitalise the ancient competition. Aptly, the 1896 games were held in Athens, with 14 nations and 241 athletes competing, per the IOC website.

A) Together, Peaceful, Competing

B) Competitive, Fair, United

C) Faster, Higher, Stronger

The original motto, Citius, Altius, Fortius means Faster, Higher, Stronger, but a change was made in 2021, with the IOC adding “Communiter” to the end of the motto. “Communiter” means “Together” in English, per the Olympics website.

A) Melbourne

B) Chicago

C) London

London first hosted the Olympics in 1908 following the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Italy. The volcano destroyed much of Naples, Italy had to divert funds from their Olympic planning in Rome to help rebuild the southern city, with London stepping in as a late replacement. London also hosted in 1948 following the conclusion of WWII and in 2012, per the Olympics website.

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A) USA

B) Denmark

C) Great Britain

Great Britain and the US were the dominant forces in Tug of War, which was competed in five games from 1900 to 1920. As nations could enter more than one team in the competition, the US won all three medals in 1904, with Britain repeating the feat four years later. A mixed team of Danish and Swedish pullers won the event in 1900, per the Olympics archive.

A) 16

B) 13

C) 14

Per Oldest, the youngest Olympic champion was 13-year-old Marjorie Gestring won a gold medal in diving for the USA.

A) 60

B) 53

C) 71

Oscar Swahn was 60 when he won the “running deer single-shot event” in 1908. Remarkably, the Swede then competed in two further games, but was unable to repeat his victory.

A) 31

B) 20

C) 26

According to the New York Times, 20 teams and individuals were able to break world records during the 2020 Games (held in 2021 due to COVID-19).

A) A bird attacked him and injured his eye

B) He was hit by a camera crew on a motorbike

C) He was attacked by a spectator

Lima was, “was assaulted by a deranged spectator about 4 miles (6.4 km) from the finish line in the men's marathon,” per The Encyclopedia Britannica. The Brazilian had a huge lead and looked set to win, but only managed bronze as a result. He was awarded the Pierre de Coubertin medal for, “his exceptional demonstration of fair play and Olympic values.”

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A) Horse long jump

B) Poodle clipping

C) 200m swimming obstacle race

Bizarrely, all three of these were real events at the 1900 Olympics, but the excellently named Constant van Langhendonck took home gold for Belgium with an astonishing 6.1m (20ft) jump with his horse Extra-Dry, per Olympedia. It’s safe to say the Olympics have changed somewhat.

A) 6

B) 10

C) 8

Usain Bolt is considered the greatest male sprinted in history, taking home eight Olympic golds during his career. In 2008, he won both the 100m and 200m sprints, before taking the Triple Crown of 100m, 200m and 4x100m golds at both London 2012 and Rio 2016.

A) Gabby Douglas

B) Simone Biles

C) Kohei Uchimura

Biles is widely thought of as the most dominant gymnast in the modern era, and in Rio 2016 she did nothing to dispel this belief, winning four golds at the games.

A) 5

B) 3

C) 7

Ledecky’s dominance during the 2016 games cannot be understated, with the American romping home to a world record time of 03:56.46, smashing the world record by two seconds and beating second-placed Jazmin Carlin by five seconds, per The Wall Street Journal.

A) Germany

B) Australia

C) India

India was the dominant force in hockey during the early years of the Olympics, winning every men’s gold from 1928-1956 and again in 1964 and 1980, per the Encyclopedia Britannica.

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