America's Political Olympians - Presidents Quiz

Answer: Franklin D. Roosevelt

Adi Dassler, the founder of Adidas shoes, persuaded Owens to wear his shoes while competing at the Berlin Olympics of 1936. In a 2007 book by Jeremy Schaap, Owens is quoted as saying "Hitler didn't snub me - it was FDR who snubbed me. The President didn't even send me a telegram". The book is "Triumph: The Untold Story of Jesse Owens and Hitler's Olympics" .

Answer: Richard Nixon

Also in Munich in '72, Mark Spitz, a Jewish American swimmer, set seven world records while winning seven gold medals. Ironically, Nixon underwent his own political tragedy when he was forced to become the first president to resign two years later.

Answer: Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt took over for the assassinated William McKinley in 1901, becoming the youngest man to become president, at least up to 2012. His victory in the 1904 election was his first as a presidential candidate. Roosevelt's cowboy-type image and personality suited a still-growing United States hosting its first Olympiad in 1904.

Answer: Ronald Reagan

It was 1984. LA's first Olympiad was held in 1932. After America had boycotted the 1980 Moscow games, 14 Communist bloc states, as well as Libya and Iran, boycotted the Los Angeles Olympics.

Answer: Dwight Eisenhower

In 1956, the Summer Olympics were held in November and December, with the exception of the equestrian events, which were held in Stockholm in June, due to Australian quarantine laws. Eisenhower was re-elected in the USA.

Answer: Lyndon B. Johnson

The year was 1964. Tokyo had won the 1940 bid, but due to Japan's 1937 invasion of China, the games were then awarded to Helsinki, before eventually being cancelled altogether as a result of World War II. Meanwhile, Johnson, who had replaced the murdered JFK in November of '63, won the 1964 election in a landslide over Republican Barry Goldwater, who won only six states.

Answer: Bill Clinton

The year was 1996. Twenty years earlier, Carter, who was from Georgia, was elected president. But this time, Clinton, who was from Arkansas, won re-election. Atlanta had won the bid over such contenders as Athens, Toronto, Melbourne and Belgrade.

Answer: William McKinley

Although there was strong sentiment during the First Olympiad in 1896 that Greece hold all subsequent Games, it would be another 108 years before the Olympiad would return to Athens. Greece's King George I, officially "King of the Hellenes" and a former Danish prince, petitioned the IOC to make Greece the permanent site for the Olympics, but was not successful. McKinley had greater luck, winning re-election in 1900, as Paris would host the Second Olympiad.

Answer: Jimmy Carter

It was the Bicentennial for the USA, 1976. Romania's Nadia Comaneci scored a perfect 10 in gymnastics on the way to three gold medals. Queen Elizabeth II attended the Opening Ceremony and her daughter Anne competed in the equestrian discipline.

Answer: Herbert Hoover

It was 1928. Johnny Weismuller, later to star in Hollywood films as Tarzan, won two gold medals in swimming. Finland's Paavo Nurmi won his ninth gold medal in distance running, spanning the 1920, 1924, and 1928 Olympics. Hoover's fortunes turned sour a year later when the Stock Market Crash set off the Great Depression, for which many Americans still believe he should be blamed.