Olympic Mascots Quiz / Test | Olympics History

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1. The idea of an Olympic mascot to represent the Games is not one that has been around for as long as the modern games. During which of these Olympics was a mascot first adopted?

Answer: 1968 Winter Olympics (Grenoble)

The first Olympic mascot was Schuss, a skier, designed to represent the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble in 1964, The name "Schuss" is derived from a straight downhill run at speed, hence differing from other skiing events such as the slalom or moguls. Since Schuss, all Olympics games have had a mascot, bar the 1972 Winter Games in Sapporo, Japan.

2. In 2004, the Olympic Games returned to their home country of Greece and its capital, Athens. During these games, two mascots were adopted. One was Phevos, a name derived from a byname for the ancient Greek sun god, Apollo. However, which other ancient Greek deity was the source of Phevos' companion's name?

Answer: Athena

Athena was the Greek goddess of wisdom and the arts, as well as having other duties as a goddess of war and as the patron deity of Athens, hence making the name selection appropriate for the Athens Olympics. The design of both Athena and Phevos was inspired by a daidala, an ancient terracotta doll, found in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens.

3. During which Olympics games were Syd, Millie, and Ollie mascots?

Answer: 2000 Summer Olympics (Sydney)

The 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney had three mascots that each represented local fauna. Syd was a platypus, Millie was a kookaburra, and Ollie an echidna. In addition, the names of the mascots are all abbreviations. Syd, an abbreviation of the host city Sydney, Millie was an abbreviation representing the millennium, in which year the Olympics were held. Ollie was an abbreviation for the Olympics.

4. Which of these animals is not represented by one of the fuwa which were the mascots for the 2008 Beijing Olympics?

Answer: Tiger

Each of the others were indeed represented by one of the fuwa, along with a Tibetan antelope. By taking the first initials of the names of each of the fuwa;- Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying, and Nini, the phrase "Beijing huanying ni" can be formed, which may be translated as "Beijing welcomes you".

5. At 2008 Beijing, which colour fuwa did not represent an animal?

Answer: Red

The red fuwa, Huanhuan, does not represent an indigenous animal, but rather the Olympic flame. In addition, Huanhuan represents fire and ball/racquet sports. In comparison, Beibei, the blue fish fuwa represents water and aquatic sports. Jingjing, the black panda fuwa represents forests and weightlifting and judo. Yingying, the yellow Tibetan antelope fuwa represents earth and track and field events. Finally, Nini, the green swift fuwa represents the air and gymnastics.

6. The names of the 2012 London Olympic mascots are named after the English villages where the first Paralympic Games were held, and the precursors to the modern Olympics were held.

Answer: True

Wenlock and Mandeville, the names of the 2012 mascots, are half the names of English villages. Wenlock, the Olympic mascot, is named after Much Wenlock, the village were the Wenlock games were held. These games were the forerunners to the modern Olympic Games, under the leadership of the Dr. William Penny Brookes. Mandeville, the Paralympic mascot, is named after the village of Stoke Mandeville, the location of the first Paralympic Games.

7. Which of the following was not one of the official 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic mascots, but rather the official sidekick of the mascots?

Answer: Mukmuk

Mukmuk, a Vancouver Island marmot, was not an official mascot but rather the sidekick of the three true mascots. Miga was a mythical creature cross between an orca and a kermode bear. Quatchi is a Sasquatch, and Sumi is a black bear with the wings of a Thunderbird.

8. Of which Olympic Games was Misha the mascot?

Answer: 1980 Summer Olympics (Moscow)

Misha, possibly the most famous of the early mascots was the bear mascot of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The 1980 Summer Olympics was the middle Olympics of three which contained famous boycotts. During this Olympics, numerous western countries boycotted in protest to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Four years later, the Soviets retaliated by leading an equally famous boycott of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Four years earlier, numerous African nations boycotted the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics.

9. Lyo and Merly were the mascots for which Olympic first?

Answer: Youth Summer Olympics

The first-ever Youth Summer Olympics were held in 2010 in Singapore. Lyo is the "Lion of the Youth Olympics" and is represented by a red lion, whilst Merly is a blue merlion, a national symbol of Singapore.

10. Hidy and Howdy were Olympic mascots for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

Answer: False

Hidy and Howdy are twin polar bears wearing western outfits that were the mascots for the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. During the Olympics, students from schools around Calgary were used to portray Hidy and Howdy. Before, the mascots were retired during the closing ceremony of the Olympics, except for a small cameo role in the film "Cool Runnings", which was set during the 1988 Calgary Olympics.

Source: Author jglane

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Nightmare before going online.
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Olympic Mascots Trivia Quiz

The Olympic Games have, for many years, been one of the major events on the sporting calendar. As a result, the Games are shown throughout the world, and countries now adopt an official Olympic mascot which may be used to identify the Olympic Games.

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