Sports on the Silver Screen Trivia Quiz

Answer: Geordie

The film is also known as "Wee Geordie" (1955). Geordie is a Scots lad who takes up throwing the hammer as part of a campaign to become larger and stronger, and lose the "wee" prefix to his name. He is successful, and Bill Travers plays the adult Geordie who wins a spot on the British Olympic team going to Melbourne for the 1956 Games.

"It Happened in Athens" (1962) concerns itself with the Marathon at the 1896 Olympics. "Chariots of Fire" (1981) is about two runners at the Paris Olympics in 1924, while "Walk, Don't Run" (1966) features race walking at the Tokyo Olympics of 1964.

Answer: Babe Ruth

The movie is about Lou Gehrig, played by Gary Cooper, and how baseball's Iron Horse is cut down by disease. Babe Ruth appears as himself, Gehrig's teammate on the Yankees.

Mantle and Maris are from a younger generation, and appear in "Safe at Home" (1962) as themselves.

There is an entire room in the Hall of Fame at Cooperstown, NY, devoted to baseball movies.

Answer: Cycling

In particular he obsesses over the Italian cycling team and hopes to compete against them. He and his friends are recent high school graduates in a town whose university population looks down on the working and middle class townies. The pursuit of his cycling dream can be seen as symbolic of their desire to break away from this situation.

Answer: Both partners are men.

Will Ferrell and Jon Heder play rival skaters who are banned from competing in men's singles competitions due to their misconduct. The only way they can continue to compete is to put aside their animosity for one another and form an unconventional pairs team. The result is quite amusing, if incredibly silly.

Answer: Golf

Based on actual events, the action takes place during the 1913 US Open golf tournament, won by young American amateur Francis Ouimet (LaBeouf), after an 18 hole playoff against former winner, Harry Vardon (Stephen Dillane), and another British player, Ted Ray. Ouimet is portrayed as having always admired Vardon, making his victory bittersweet.

Answer: Maurice Richard

Roy Dupuis plays Maurice "The Rocket" Richard in this film which explores not only his illustrious career, but the tribulations he experiences as a French Canadian player in a largely Anglophone league. The other players listed have come along since Richard's time, and are known as "The Great One" (Gretzky), "Mr Hockey" (Howe) and "The Golden Jet" (Hull).

Answer: False

American Phil Hill (1961 champion) and Briton Graham Hill (champ in 1962 and 1968) are not related, and though both appear in "Grand Prix" they play fictional drivers in fairly small roles. James Garner, Yves Montand, Brian Bedford and Toshiro Mifune play the main characters, but the real stars of the film are the cars.

The racing scenes are a pleasure to watch, the age of the film notwithstanding.

Answer: Nicolas Cage

Though the other three choices are all Canadian, it is the American Cage who plays "The Boy in Blue" in what is a typical sports biopic that plays fast and loose with the real story. Plummer plays a businessman who becomes interested in the young rower's career and Cage looks good in his rowing kit.

Candy, it must be said, would not make a very convincing sculler.

Answer: Sylvester Stallone and Michael Caine

Stallone is an American captain, and Caine is an English officer who are involved in a rather complex scheme to escape with their entire team. An alternate title for the film is "Escape to Victory".

The incorrect pairings come from "The Great Escape" (McQueen/Attenborough and Garner/Pleasence) and "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (Holden/Guinness), two rather better prisoner of war movies, at least to my mind.

Answer: Wimbledon

Bettany plays a tennis player whose star is fading, until he meets Dunst, who plays an up and coming female star who encourages him to make one more attempt at winning a major tournament. Various obstacles are placed in the way, of course, in the manner of romantic comedies. "Wimbledon" also stars Sam Neill and Jon Favreau.