64. |
In Artistic gymnastics, what are the only 2 events that are common to men and women? |
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The Floor Exercise and the Vault Men compete on Floor Exercise, Pommel Horse, Still Rings, Vault, Parallel Bars, and High Bar, while women compete on Vault, Uneven Bars, Beam, and Floor Exercise. |
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63. |
In May 2005, the American businessman Malcolm Glazer completed a hostile takeover of which sports organization? |
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Manchester United Football Club The club has had the highest average attendance in English football for the past 34 seasons, with the exception of 1987-89. Among European clubs, they have been perennial revenue leaders for the late 1990s and early 2000s, and they are still the fourth richest (in terms of revenue) in the world. |
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62. |
Which sport did Ernest Hemingway refer to in his 1932 non-fiction book 'Death in the Afternoon' as "... is the only art in which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter's honour."?
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Bullfighting |
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61. |
Which game is played in seven-minute periods called 'chukkas'? |
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Polo It is played outdoor on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Riders score by driving a white wooden or plastic ball into the opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet. |
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60. |
Traditionally at Wimbledon, there is no play on which day, which is considered a rest day? |
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The Middle Sunday of the 2-week tournament However, rain has forced play on the Middle Sunday three times in the Championship's history: in 1991, 1997, and 2004. On each of these occasions, Wimbledon has staged a "People's Sunday", with unreserved seating and readily available, inexpensive tickets. |
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59. |
The Kalenjin are an ethnic group of Nilotic origin living in the Great Rift Valley in western Kenya. What are they famous for, in connection with sports? |
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Long distance running The Kalenjin have been called by some "the running tribe." Since the mid-1960s, Kenyan men have earned the largest share of major honors in international athletics at distances from 800 meters to the marathon; the vast majority of these Kenyan running stars have been Kalenjin. From 1980 on, about 40% of the top honors available to men in international athletics at these distances (Olympic medals, World Championships medals, and World Cross Country Championships honors) have been earned by Kalenjin. |
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58. |
Which move in chess is unusual in that it is the only occasion in which a piece captures but does not move to the square of the captured piece? |
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En Passant Historically, en passant is one of the last series of major rule changes in European chess that occurred in the 14th to 15th century, together with the introduction of the two-square first move for pawns, castling, and the unlimited range for queens and bishops. Because of their separation from European chess prior to that period, the Asian chess variants do not feature any of these moves. |
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57. |
What sport did Oscar Wilde refer to as "the unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable"? |
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Foxhunting It is a recreational form of hunting in which trained dogs pursue Red Foxes, followed by human hunters who are usually on horses but sometimes on foot. Many animal welfare campaigners object to it as barbaric, while many proponents and participants view it as a crucial part of rural history in England, vital for conservation, and a method of pest control. |
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56. |
In the US, Baseball parks are often designed so that the batter is facing east, in order that the afternoon or evening sun does not shine in his eyes. This means that left-handed pitchers are throwing from the south side. What term originated from this? |
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'Southpaw', meaning a left-hander. The first use of the term is credited to Finley Peter Dunne. However, the Oxford English Dictionary lists a non-baseball citation for "south paw", meaning a punch with the left hand, as early as 1848, just three years after the first organized baseball game. In boxing, someone who boxes left-handed is frequently referred to as southpaw. |
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55. |
Which type of race originated in the British Isles where runners raced from one town's X to the next where the X's were used as markers due to their visibility over long distances. Along the way runners inevitably had to jump creeks and low stone walls separating estates. |
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Steeplechase (X is a steeple) The length of the race is usually 3000 m. The number of laps depends on whether the water jump is located to the inside of lane one or to the outside of lane eight or nine. Each runner encounters a total of 28 barriers over the course of the race, as well as 7 water jumps. |
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54. |
Which professional sports team in the US holds the record for most retired numbers? |
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The Boston Celtics, with 21 The Celtics also hold the record for most championships, with 16. |
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53. |
The 'Aussie Round' is considered by many to be the ultimate test of skills in this field where an object should cross a 50 metre circle and come right back to the centre. What is the object in question? |
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A Boomerang Each thrower has five attempts. Points are awarded for distance, accuracy and the catch.
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52. |
In archery parlance, what is doing 'a Robinhood'? |
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Splitting an arrow already lodged in the target with another one. |
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51. |
In the 1880s students of Oxford university abbreviated words by adding "er" to the end; for instance, breakfast became "brekkers" and "rugby rules" was referred to as "rugger." The name of which sport originated from this practice? |
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Soccer When one student, Charles Wreford Brown, was asked if he'd like to play rugger, he was the first to abbreviate "association rules" (Football Association rules) by answering, "No, soccer." Brown later became an England international and Football Association vice-president. |
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50. |
Which event traditionally starts at a place called Hopkinton and ends at Copley Square, alongside the city's Public Library? |
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The Boston Marathon Occuring annually on Patriot's Day, the third Monday of April, the Boston Marathon is the world's oldest annual marathon and ranks as one of the world's most prestigious road racing events. It is considered to be one of the more difficult marathon courses because of the infamous Newton, Massachusetts, hills along Washington Street and Commonwealth Avenue, which culminate in Heartbreak Hill near Boston College. |
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49. |
The main news in London on July 7th 2005 was the bombing. What was the main news item the previous day, related to sports? |
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London winning the Olympic bid |
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48. |
Which American football player was in the cast of the movie 'The Dirty Dozen' and announced his retirement from professional football during the filming of the movie? |
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Jim Brown |
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47. |
Which matching card game, in which the objective is to create melds of cards of the same rank and then go out by discarding them, is named after the Spanish word for "basket"? |
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Canasta It is believed that Canasta was invented in Montevideo, Uruguay in the early twentieth century. It then spread to Argentina, and then to the United States and the rest of the world. The game was very popular in the 1950s. |
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46. |
An attempt to run round the perimeter of the 'Great Court' in the time during the clock striking twelve is a Matriculation Dinner day tradition at which hallowed institution? |
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Trinity College, Cambridge This race is also depicted in the movie 'Chariots of Fire'. It is a rather difficult challenge and the only people believed to have actually completed the run in time are Lord Burghley in 1927 and Sebastian Coe when he beat Steve Cram in a charity race in October 1988.
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45. |
During the buildup to the 1994 Olympics, which NBA star made the following memorable quote concerning the controversial skater Tonya Harding: "I heard Tonya Harding is calling herself the X of figure skating. I was going to sue her for defamation of character, but then I realized I have no character." |
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Charles Barkley Harding became notorious for allegedly conspiring to harm competitor Nancy Kerrigan in an attack, which occurred on January 6, 1994 at a practice session during the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. |
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44. |
The tennis player Vitas Gerulaitis was a colorful character. After finally beating which player after 16 straight losses did he quip "Nobody beats Vitas Gerulaitis 17 times in a row"? |
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Jimmy Connors Gerulaitis is considered one of the great "might-have beens" of tennis. Some believe that by indulging in a close and perhaps servile friendship with Björn Borg, Gerulaitis may have stifled the aggressive instincts needed to bring a player to the top rank. He is remembered as one of the most pleasing players to watch on court, and a gentleman off court. He died in a tragic carbon monoxide poisoning accident in 1994 at age 40. |
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43. |
What are the two events in competitive weightlifting? |
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'Snatch' and 'Clean and Jerk'. A third lift, the "clean and press" or simply "press", was practiced in the Olympics until 1972. The clean and press differs from the clean and jerk, in that the weight is pressed directly up from the chest with the arms only, while remaining standing, while the jerk uses the legs' power to assist the arms part of the way up, followed by the body sinking downward into a split or squat to complete the extension of the arms, before once again standing. The press was eliminated due to the difficulty in judging whether the lift was performed correctly: Lifters were bending so far backward as to turn it into a "standing bench press". |
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42. |
Which American hall of fame basketball player, also a former U.S. Senator, appears as a character and vice President in Jeffrey Archer's 'Shall we tell the President'?
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Bill Bradley In 1969-70, he helped the Knicks win their first NBA championship, followed by a second in 1972-73. The second championship season was Bradley’s best and he made his only All-Star Game appearance that year. Retiring from basketball in 1977, he was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. In 1984 the Knicks retired his number 24 jersey. |
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41. |
In the game of Curling, what is the name given to the target area towards which teams slide heavy, polished granite stones? |
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The House Two sweepers with brooms accompany each rock and use timing equipment and their best judgement along with direction from their other teammates to help direct the stones to their resting place. The complex nature of stone placement and shot selection has led some to refer to curling as "chess on ice". |
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40. |
After the Olympics, what are the world's second-largest multi-sport event?
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The Commonwealth Games Attendance at the Commonwealth Games is typically around 5,000 athletes.
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39. |
In the Olympics, what is the longest race in Athletics in terms of distance? |
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The 50 km Walk Most people mistakenly assume its the Marathon, which is 42.195 kms or 26 miles, 385 yards. |
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38. |
The 1999 movie 'Endurance' chronicles the quest of which middle-distance runner, considered to be one of the best of all time, to win Olympic gold in the 10,000-meters in Atlanta? |
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Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia As a child growing up on a farm in Ethiopia he used to run ten kilometres to school every morning, and the same back every evening. This led to a distinctive running posture, with his left arm crooked as if still holding his schoolbooks. |
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37. |
The Summer Olympics of 1916, 1940 and 1944 were cancelled due to the World Wars. But had they taken place, what were the assigned locations? |
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1916 - Berlin; 1940 - Tokyo then moved to Helsinki; 1944 - London Before their cancellation, the games of 1940 were retracted from Tokyo by the IOC due to the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937. |
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36. |
What nickname was given to the New York Yankees baseball team of the late 1920s, in particular the 1927 team, to describe the 1918 pre-Babe Ruth Yankee lineup, a team with quality hitters? |
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Murderer's row The 1927 Yankees are recognized as one of the best teams in baseball history, alongside the 1939 Yankees, the 1961 Yankees and the 1998 Yankees. |
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35. |
Statistically the greatest driver of Formula One, Michael Schumacher won his seven championships with which two companies? |
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Benetton and Ferrari After winning two championships with Benetton, Schumacher moved to the Ferrari in 1996 and won five consecutive drivers' titles with them. |
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34. |
In the Tour de France cycle race, who is called as 'lanterne rouge' - meaning "red lantern" ? |
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The overall last-place rider.
Because a red lantern is found at the end of a rail train. |
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33. |
Which sport takes place on 'piste', which according to the current regulations should be between 1.5 and 2 meters wide and 14 meters long? |
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Fencing |
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32. |
There is a prize for the fastest circumnavigation of the world by any type of yacht with no restrictions on the size of the crew and it was first awarded to the first yacht which sailed around the world in less than 80 days. Can you guess after whom the trophy is named? |
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Jules Verne, of course! The original idea for this competition has been attributed to Yves Le Cornec in 1985. The rules were defined in 1990. |
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31. |
In which sport, which was also part of the Olympic Games from 1900 until 1920, does the winner move backwards? |
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Tug of war |
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30. |
Who was the first tennis player to be ranked no. 1 by a computer? |
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Ilie Nastase Until the computer-generated rankings began in 1973, all previous rankings going back to 1913 had been to at least some degree subjective. Even the "authoritative" end-of-the-year amateur rankings issued by such groups as the United States Lawn Tennis Association were based on judgments made by men and women and not on mathematical formulas assigning points for wins or losses. |
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29. |
Mohammed Ali said that he adopted which practice from Gorgeous George, an otherwise mediocre t.v. wrestler, who used this technique and drew thousands of fans to arenas in their hopes to see him lose, and thus be 'shut up'? |
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Predicting the round in which he would finish opponents |
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28. |
In golf, what is referred to as a "chunk" or a "chili-dipping"? |
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A swing that results in the clubhead hitting the ground several inches before the ball, resulting in a large "chunk" of ground being taken as a divot. |
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27. |
According to the DVD movie interview of the movie 'Amadeus', Tom Hulce studied which sportsman's mood swings for his portrayal of Mozart's unpredictable genius? |
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John McEnroe |
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26. |
Whom did Muhammad Ali refer to when he said that while he does consider himself the greatest heavyweight in boxing history, X is the greatest pound for pound boxer of all time? |
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Sugar Ray Robinson Robinson is widely considered one of the greatest boxers in history, and has been ranked as the greatest boxer of all time by sportswriters, fellow boxers, and trainers. The phrase "pound for pound", was created by sportswriters for him during his career as a way to compare boxers irrespective of weight, and Hall of Fame fighters such as Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis and Sugar Ray Leonard have ranked Robinson as the greatest pound for pound boxer in history. |
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25. |
In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, two pioneer physical educators – Johann Friedrich GutsMuth (1759 – 1839) and Friedrich Ludwig Jahn (1778 – 1852) - created exercises for boys and young men on apparatus they designed that ultimately led to what? |
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The Modern Gymnastics In particular, Jahn crafted early models of the horizontal bar, the parallel bars (from a horizontal ladder with the rungs removed), and the vaulting horse. By the end of the nineteenth century, men's gymnastics competition was popular enough to be included in the first "modern" Olympic Games in 1896.
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24. |
Which great American sprinter was nicknamed the "Duck" for his unique running style, characterized by his head bobbing backwards and forward, straightness of his back and not much arm drive? |
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Michael Johnson His upright stance and very short steps defied the perceived wisdom that a high knee lift was essential for maximum speed. When asked by a reporter, "If you had a usual running technique like other runners do you think you would go faster?" Johnson responded by saying "If I ran like all the other runners, I would be back there with them." |
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23. |
Which American athlete revolutionized the high jump using a back-first technique that is now known by his name? |
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Dick Fosbury (Fosbury Flop) His method was to sprint diagonally towards the bar, then curve and leap backwards over the bar. As a student at Oregon State University, he won the 1968 NCAA title using his new technique, as well as the US Olympic trials. At the 1968 Summer Olympics, which were held in Mexico City, he took the gold medal and set a new Olympic record (2.24 meters / 7 feet 4.25 inches), displaying the potential of the new technique. Despite the initial skeptical reactions from the high jumping community, the new technique quickly gained popularity, and it is almost exclusively used by modern high jumpers.
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22. |
Which land area near Wendover, Utah that is marked out for motor sports is particularly noted as the venue for numerous land speed records?
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Bonneville Speedway It is part of the 159 sq mile Bonneville salt flat in northwestern Utah. The area is extremely flat and nearly aligned perfectly with the shape of Earth, allowing visitors to see the curvature of the planet by producing an optical illusion that makes many of the mountains within the vicinity appear to be floating in the air since their bases are on the other side of the curve and thus out-of-sight. |
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21. |
What is the best-selling commercial board game in the world? |
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Monopoly It is published by Parker Brothers, an imprint of Hasbro. According to Hasbro, since Charles Darrow patented the game in 1935, approximately 750 million people have played the game, making it "the most played [commercial] board game in the world." The 1999 Guinness Book of Records cited Hasbro's previous statistic of 500 million people having played Monopoly. Games Magazine has inducted Monopoly into its Hall of Fame. |
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20. |
What does the name of the famous race horse 'Seabiscuit' really mean? |
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It is a synonym for a type of cracker known as hardtack. It is a biscuit made from flour, water, and salt. Inexpensive and long-lasting, it was used during long sea voyages and military campaigns as a primary foodstuff. The name derives from the British seamen's slang for food, "tack", and the fact it is so hard and dry. |
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19. |
In the US, the World Series of Major League Baseball is confined to the champions of two baseball leagues that currently operate only in the United States and Canada. So how did the name "World Series" come about, even though only 2 countries participate?
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When the term "World's Championship Series" was first used in the 1880s, baseball was almost exclusively confined to North America, especially the United States, at a high level. Thus it was understood that the winner of the major league championship was the best baseball team in the world. The title of this event was soon shortened to "World's Series" and later to "World Series". A recent myth has arisen that the "World" in "World Series" came about because the New York World newspaper sponsored it. There is no evidence at all supporting that hypothesis. |
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18. |
As of 2004, what is the only Olympic sport in which no professionals compete? |
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Boxing In the 1970s, amateurism requirements were dropped from the Olympic Charter, leaving decisions on professional participation to the international federation for each sport. This switch was perhaps best exemplified by the American Dream Team, composed of well-paid NBA stars, which won the Olympic gold medal in basketball in 1992. |
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17. |
Which medieval sport is the official state sport of Maryland, and also the first official sport of any American state? |
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Ring jousting |
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16. |
On August 13, 1999, which tennis player ranked No. 3 became the highest ranked player ever to announce retirement from the sport (Note: This record was broken by No. 1 Justine Henin in May 2008)? |
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Steffi Graf |
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15. |
The world of Athletics is full of inspiring examples. One of them is this Black Gazelle, who overcame polio in her childhood to become a three-time Olympic champion in 1960. Who is this American woman? |
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Wilma Rudolph |
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14. |
If a chess player says j'adoube, what is he about to do? |
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Adjust the position of a piece on its square without the intention of moving it. Adjustment can only be done when it is the player's move and the adjustment is preceded by speaking I adjust or j'adoube. |
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13. |
Which golfer courted controversy when he was misquoted about Annika Sorenstam playing at The Colonial in 2003 as "I hope she misses the cut ... because she doesn't belong out here."? |
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Vijay Singh He later said that the substance of his interview to an Associated Press reporter was that she would be displacing some other struggling male player, for whom he had his sympathies. However, the media focused on this statement, Golf Digest writing that Singh had become "pro golf's bad guy". |
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12. |
In Japanese sporting world, one of the more unusual memorabilia that can be purchased is the 'Tegata'. What is it? |
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The sumo version of an autograph. Tegata consist of a hand print of the wrestler accompanied by his fighting name written in calligraphic style by the wrestler himself. The ink for the handprint itself can be either red or black. Original tegata can be quite expensive, but printed copies of the most popular wrestlers can be obtained very inexpensively. |
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11. |
After beating which enigmatic player (and Grand Slam winner) in the 2nd round of French Open tennis in 2007 did Janko Tipsarevic say "For him, tennis is like a toy. When it's interesting for him, no one in the world can beat him. But then when it's not interesting, he just doesn't show his talent."? |
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Marat Safin |
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10. |
What is the maximum score that can be achived in a single game of bowling? |
|
300 Over 56,000 perfect games were recorded by USBC in 2005. |
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9. |
In US college sports, what is the most common nickname/school mascot? |
|
Eagles The 12 most used names of four-year college mascots: Eagles (74), Tigers (46), Bulldogs (39), Panthers (33), Knights (32), Lions (31), Bears (30), Hawks (28), Cougars (27), Pioneers (27), Warriors (27) and Wildcats (25). |
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8. |
Which sporting rules were written by John Graham Chambers in 1865 and published in 1867 superseding the Revised London Prize Ring rules (1853)? |
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The Queensberry rules for the sport of boxing They were named so because the 9th Marquess of Queensberry publicly endorsed the code. This version persuaded boxers that "you must not fight simply to win; no holds barred is not the way; you must win by the rules".
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7. |
As of July 2006, the NFL, MLB and the NBA (in that order) of the US rank as the three of the four most lucrative sports leagues in the world. Which league occupies the fourth place? |
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Premier League of English soccer, slighly ahead of NHL |
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6. |
Which Chess opening, also named for a Spanish monk, consists of the following moves: 1)e4, e5 2)Nf3, Nc6 3)Bb5? |
|
The Ruy Lopez One of the most popular openings, it has such a vast number of variations that in the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings all codes from C60 to C99 are assigned to them.
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5. |
The uniform of which NFL team of the US is green because David Werblin, who purchased the team in 1963 and gave them their current name, was born on St Patrick's day? |
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The New York Jets The team began in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League under the name New York Titans. The Jets later joined the NFL as part of the AFL-NFL Merger. The Jets hold the distinction of being the first AFL team to defeat an NFL club in an AFL-NFL World Championship Game when they defeated the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. |
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4. |
Nicknamed the Russian Dan Gable, he went undefeated in international competition from 1987 until 2000. He also won gold medals at the 1988, 1992, and 1996 Olympic Games and went the last six years of his unbeaten streak without giving up a point. Who is he? |
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Alexander Karelin, the Greco-Roman wrestler. Karelin was famous for his body lift, the "Karelin Lift", where facing the opponent who was lying flat on the mat to keep from being thrown, Karelin was able to lift the opponent from around his waist and throw him all the way over his shoulders, scoring from 2 to 5 points depending on the height of the throw. Karelin's ability to perform this throw against elite opponents weighing as much as 130 kg was amazing to audiences as well as other participants and observers of the sport. |
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3. |
Where is the International tennis hall of fame? |
|
Newport, Rhode Island, USA |
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2. |
What event began in 1973 in Alaska to test the best dogsled mushers and teams, evolving into the highly competitive race it is today? |
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The Iditarod It is an annual race where mushers and teams of dogs cover about 1,151 miles (1,853 km) in eight to fifteen days. Frequently teams race through blizzards causing whiteout conditions, and sub-zero weather and gale-force winds which can cause the wind chill to reach -100 °F (-75 °C). The Iditarod is regarded as a symbolic link to the early history of the state, and is connected to many traditions commemorating the legacy of dog mushing. |
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1. |
What games, first held in 1981, are an international multi-sport event meant for sports that are not contested in the Olympic Games? |
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The World Games Some of the sports that were on the program of the World Games eventually made it as Olympic sports (such as triathlon) or have been Olympic sports in the past (like tug of war). Some of the sports that are currently held at the World Games are orienteering, body building, powerlifting, finswimming, squash, netball, water skiing, casting, etc. The sports that are included in the World Games are based on the facilities available in the host city, no new facilities may be constructed for the games. |
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