BS: Olympics trivia quiz

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: Wolfgang
Date: 24 Aug 04 - 05:34 PM

I just have found that my response to who has wone most golds is not complete.
Paavo Nurmi also ties for nine golds (but has more silver, 3, than either Lewis or Spitz).

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: Wolfgang
Date: 27 Aug 04 - 05:38 PM

She did it! She did it!

Birgit Fischer at 42 has canoed to gold today to make this the sixth Olympic Games she returns from taking each time at least one gold. She's the first woman to do this and has equalled Gerevich's record (see question (3) above). She had "definitely" retired after Sydney. Eight months ago, a photographer asked her to mount(?) a canoe for some shots and suddenly she got the feeling she'd like to try it once more. About six months ago she restarted training.

She was our all times best athlete already at Sydney. When asked this time about retirement she said she would make no promises this time. Well, she'll only be 46 next time...

Speaking about oldtimers: Ard had mentioned Ron Delaney above. If I'm not mistaken (that runner, Eamon Coughlan?, and the rider, Eddie Maken??, were 'only' world champions, weren't they?) he was the last Irish male athlete to win a gold medal, nearly 50 years ago. From today on, he's no longer the last male Irish athlete to have won a gold. I've seen that unexpected Irish gold with a lot of pleasure. And please, don't wait 48 years for the next one, O.K.?

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: GUEST,Ard Mhacha
Date: 28 Aug 04 - 07:54 AM

Wolfgang I watched with joy young Cian O`Connor win his Gold last night.
Population does count, I believe we can hold our head up with the rest, from 5 million people we have had more than our share of champions.
Yes Eamon Coughlan was 5.000 Meters World Champion, and we also had two in a row World Cross Country Champion John Treacy this was in the 70s or 60s, and of Eddie Macken I couldn`t say for sure.
I am just praying that young O`Connor`s horse,Waterford Crystal passes the drugs test,you never know.

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Aug 04 - 07:57 AM

John Treacy should read 70s or 80s, in Glasgow and Limerick.

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: Wolfgang
Date: 28 Aug 04 - 07:17 PM

Ard, you are right, if you take population into account the picture changes a lot.

Medals per capita (don't know whether these games are already included in that site where I copied the numbers from):

France ranked 41st, USA 45th, Great Britain 48th, Ireland 49th

Ireland is in that per capita count better than average (116 listed and many more nations without any medal at all) and is in quite prominent neighbourhood.

(I'm sure you know some medal winners listed under 'Great Britain' you'd prefer to count under 'Ireland', but to be fair you'd then also have to increase the number of inhabitants of Ireland. However, that's not a good theme for a sports thread)

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: GUEST
Date: 29 Aug 04 - 07:39 AM

Irish born winners have represented GB,USA, and South Africa, the latter was a marathon runner from memory around 1912, I haven`t looked up the Mongolian records yet, you never can tell.

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: GUEST,Ard Mhacha
Date: 29 Aug 04 - 08:33 AM

Wolfgang in addition to the above note I googled on to Irish Records in Olympics and a very informative sight gave the Irish born participants who represented various nations in the Games, this was before 1924 when Ireland was affiliated to the Games.
The countries they represented were Britain, USA, Canada,and South Africa winning a total of 24 Gold medals.
Look up the early games and you will find the Hammer event was completely taken over by Irishmen representing the USA, the oul memory is still working that Marathon winner was a County Antrim man named Kennedy McArthur.
The 49th placing would rocket up if you included the above winners.

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: GUEST,Ard Mhacha
Date: 09 Oct 04 - 12:53 PM

Further up the Thread I had written, "I am just praying that young O`Connor`s horse Waterford Crystal, passes the drug test", [many a true word said in jest], well, it was revealed this week that Waterford Crystal tested positive for drugs, nil medals for Ireland.

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: Wolfgang
Date: 22 Aug 08 - 07:06 AM

Some of the above trivia questions now have a different response.

Just to add a bit of (German) trivia:

Our most successful ever athlete, above mentioned Birgit Fischer (gold at six different Olympic games), had declared last spring she would not compete this time. Such a pity, as she's only 46 years of age now.

But of course she was in Peking, commenting today the final in which she did win gold last time. She could congratulate her niece, Fanny Fischer (25 years younger than herself), with three others for the gold.

This is as far as I know the first aunt-niece pair winning gold at the same event at two immideately successive games.

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: BS: Olympics trivia quiz
From: Wolfgang
Date: 22 Aug 08 - 07:20 AM

A new trivia question for afficionados:

Who is the most medalled athlete never adding a gold to a collection of silver and bronze? And how many Olympic S&B can (s)he call his/her own?

Wolfgang