May They Rest in Peace (Sports) - January 2023 Quiz

Answer: Alpine skiing

Rosi Mittermaier had a stellar year in 1976 as she won the Alpine Ski World Cup as well as gold medals at the Winter Olympics in the downhill and slalom disciplines and silver in the giant slalom. Mittermaier made her professional skiing debut in 1967 at the age of just 16 and after her amazing season in 1976 she retired at just 25 years old.

After her skiing career, Mittermaier wrote several non-fiction books and designed clothing for winter sports. Rosi Mittermaier died from cancer on January 4, 2023, at the age of 72.

Answer: Dick Savitt

Dick Savitt was born in Bayonne, NJ, USA in 1927 and he excelled in both basketball and tennis in high school. Just one year after he graduated college, in 1951 Savitt won the Australian Open and Wimbledon by beating Ken McGregor in the finals in both tournaments. Savitt's Jewish heritage became a topic of discussion at the 1951 Davis Cup when the USA lost to Australia.

The U.S.'s captain, Frank Shields, opted to play Ted Schroeder in a decisive match rather than Savitt, a decision thought by many to be prejudicial. Dick Savitt retired in 1952 at the age of 25 and he died on January 6, 2023, at the age of 95.

Answer: Running back

Charles White was a running back for USC and he led the NCAA in rushing yards in both 1978 (1,859) and 1979 (2,050). Over his four year career at USC, White set records for attempts (1,147) and rushing yards (6,245). Unfortunately, White's college football success did not translate into a great career in the NFL.

However, White had one outstanding season in 1987. That year as a member of the Los Angeles Rams, he led the league in attempts (324), rushing yards (1,374) and rushing touchdowns (11) and he won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award. Charles White died of liver cancer on January 11, 2023, at the age of 64.

Answer: South Africa

Gerrie Coetzee was born in South Africa in 1955 and he had some great nicknames: The Boksburg Bomber and The Bionic Hand. Coetzee began his professional boxing career in 1974 and he was the first person from the continent of Africa to win a heavyweight championship. During his career Coetzee had knockout wins against other WBA champions including Michael Dokes and Leon Spinks. Gerrie Coetzee died on January 12, 2023, at the age of 67 from lung cancer.

Answer: Motorcycle jumping

Robbie Knievel (born Robert Edward Knievel II) was born in 1962 in Butte, MT, USA. He was the son of Robert "Evel" Knievel who was known for death defying ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps. Following in his father's footsteps, Robbie Knievel made insane motorcycle jumps over the Caesar's Palace fountains, the Grand Canyon, a moving locomotive and five planes aboard the USS Intrepid. Robbie Knievel died on January 13, 2023, at the age 60 from pancreatic cancer.

Answer: He hit 20 out of 20 targets in rifle shooting.

Klas Lestander was born in Arjeplog, Sweden in 1931 and his experience as a hunter made him switch from cross-country skiing to the biathlon. At the 1960 Squaw Valley Olympics, Lestander was 15th out of 30 entrants after the skiing portion. Not to be phased by this, Lestander then hit 20 out of 20 targets in rifle shooting.

As a comparison, the fastest skier, Victor Arbez, missed 18 of the 20 targets and finished 25th overall due to the severe two minute penalty for each target missed in rifle shooting. With a time of 1:33:21.6, Lestander won the gold medal over Antti Tyrväinen by just 36.1 seconds. Klas Lestander died on January 13, 2023 at the age of 91.

Answer: Home runs

Hiromitsu Kadota hit 567 home runs in his career that spanned from 1970 to 1992. He primarily played for the Nankai/Fukuoka Daiei Hawks franchise and he achieved his high home run total in spite of having diabetes mellitus for part of his career. In 1988 Kadota was the MVP of the Pacific League and he was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006. Hiromitsu Kadota died on January 23, 2023, at the age of 74.

Answer: Winnipeg Jets

Bobby Hull was born in Point Anne, Ontario, Canada, in 1939 and his professional hockey career began in 1957 as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks. Hull played for the Blackhawks for 15 seasons during which he won the Stanley Cup in 1961 and led the NHL in scoring three times.

In spite of his success with the Blackhawks, Hull was frustrated with his salary and stated that he would play for the Winnipeg Jets of the rival WHA for a million dollars. Lo and behold, the Jets signed Hull as a player/coach for a contract valued at more than $1 million and during his time with the team he twice won MVP and led the team to two AVCO Cups before the WHA folded after the 1978-79 season. Bobby Hull died on January 30, 2023, at the age of 84.

Answer: NCAA Men's Basketball

Billy Packer was born in Wellsville, NY, USA in 1940. Packer played as a guard on the Wake Forest basketball team for three seasons and in 1962 he led the team to the Final Four (aka the four semi-finalists). Packer's first national broadcasting position came with NBC in 1974 and in 1981 he moved to CBS when that network acquired the broadcasting rights to the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four.

In total Packer covered the NCAA Tournament for 35 years before he was replaced by Clark Kellogg in 2008. Billy Packer died on January 26, 2023, at the age of 82 from kidney failure.

Answer: He was the first official inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Art McNally was born in Philadelphia, PA, USA in 1925 and after graduating from high school in 1943 he served as a U.S. Marine in World War II. In 1959 McNally became a referee for the NFL and in 1968 he was appointed the league's director of officiating. McNally would hold that position until 1991 and in 2022 he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame becoming the first official to get that honor.

At the age of 96, McNally also set a record as the oldest person inducted into the Hall of Fame while still alive. Art McNally died on January 1, 2023, at the age of 97.