Australian Sporting Legends Trivia Quiz

Answer: Billiards

Born into a billiards playing family, Lindrum learned to play while still a child. His elder brother, Fred, was Australian champion in 1908. Lindrum regularly gave away starts of up to 7,000 points in a 'first to 16,000' format, and usually won with consummate ease against the best in the world.

In 1932 he made a break of 4,137 when he occupied the table for 2 hours without missing a shot- still a world record. He was the master of the 'nursery cannon' which involves keeping the three balls close together and touching both the target balls in the one shot. Walter's nephew, Horace, was also a master with the cue, becoming world snooker champion in 1952. Lindrum died in 1960 and is buried in Melbourne General Cemetery.

His gravestone is a carving of a billiards table, complete with crossed cues and three balls.

Answer: Rod Laver

The 'Rockhampton Rocket' took the Australian, French, US and Wimbledon titles in 1962 and again in 1969. He was also the first to win $1,000,000 in prize money. Laver was the first man in the 20th century to appear in the finals of the six Wimbledons that he entered, (1959, 60, 61, 62, 68 and 69), a record equalled by Bjorn Borg in 1981.

A small wiry left-hander, he confounded his opponents with his use of powerful topspinning returns. His awesome 23-year career was capped by being elevated to the Tennis Hall of Fame in 1981.

Answer: Dawn Fraser

'Our Dawn' was a speedster in the pool and a bit of a larrikan out of it. Dawn won the blue-riband 100 metres freestyle in Melbourne (1956), Rome (1960) and Tokyo (1964). In 1962 she became the first woman to swim this distance in under 60 seconds. Her 'enforced' retirement came about at the Tokyo Olympics, where she was banned for 10 years for allegedly stealing the Japanese Emperor's personal flag; an act that she strenuously denies.

In her post-swimming career she has managed a cheese-shop, owned a pub and in 1988 become the local parliamentary member for her beloved suburb of Balmain in Sydney.

Answer: Ric Charlesworth

Ric played cricket for the Western Australians from 1972-79, but could not quite crack into the national team. He had more success on the hockey field, however, competing at four Olympics and coming home with silver medals from Munich and Montreal. During the 1980s he also scored numerous medals at World Cups and Champions Trophies.

A qualified medical doctor, he was named W.A. Sportsman of the year three times, and was awarded the prestigious Order Of Australia in 1987. Ric was elected Federal Member for Perth in 1983, and remained in politics for ten years.

He then took on the coaching position for the Australian Women's Hockey team, the Hockeyroos, where they scored gold at Atlanta and Sydney Olympics. They also won the World Cup in 1994 and 1998.

After retiring from competitive sports, he turned his hand to become a motivational sports speaker based in Perth, Western Australia.

Answer: 16

She only lost 2 games at this tournament over 16 years. A truly remarkable performance! In the same era, Geoff Hunt was a dominating force in the men's game. Heather was one of three founding inductees into the Women's International Squash Players' Association (WISPA) Hall of Fame, receiving her award in 1999.

A very talented athlete, she was also an accomplished tennis player, and represented Australia in hockey. She later moved to Canada to coach, and discovered the game of racquetball. After winning every Canadian Open that she entered, she was inducted into that sport's Hall of Fame in 1997.

Answer: Peter Brock

Brocky, or Peter Perfect, took the honours in Australia premier race-Mt. Panorama circuit at Bathurst, New South Wales- an astonishing nine times between 1972 and 1987. Most of these wins were in Holden Commodores bearing his trademark racing number-05. He also chalked up a staggering array of other driving awards including, of all things, the 1968 Australian HillClimb Championship and the Repco Round Australia Trial in 1979! He heads the list of Australian Touring Car Championships with 37, ahead of his Ford-driving arch-rival at Bathurst, Alan Moffat, who has 32. After retiring from professional racing in 1997, Brocky was not idle. He featured in a variety of TV commercials, fronted a show called 'Police, Camera, Action', commentated races, and established a foundation for helping children with leukaemia. He was also a torchbearer for the Sydney Olympics, and was recruited as a motivating Mentor for the Aussie Olympic team. He was, above all, a true champion, and a gentleman, too.

Unfortunately, Brocky was killed in a racing accident in September, 2006.

Answer: Kingston Town

The son of the great sire Bletchingly, the 'King' won Australia's most prestigious weight-for-age race, the W.S. Cox Plate, in 1980, 1981 and 1982. He passed the magic million dollar mark in 1981, just ahead of another great horse, Manikato, who achieved the mark the following year.

He was unluckily beaten in the 1982 Melbourne Cup, getting pipped on the post by Gurners Lane. Trained by the legendary TJ Smith and usually with Malcolm Johnson on board, he captured the imagination of even the non-racing fraternity in his short and illustrious career. Sadly, injuries forced an end to his racing life in 1983.

He started 41 times for 30 wins and was only unplaced four times.

Answer: Roy

Standing 5'11' (180cm), and weighing just 175lb (80kg), Cazaly was able to take the most incredible high-flying marks. Mike Brady's song, released in 1979 became an unofficial anthem of the game. Cazaly played 99 games for St. Kilda between 1911 and 1920.

In his final year there he was voted Champion of the season. After a dispute with the club he joined South Melbourne where he played a further 100 games, in addition to coaching Souths, and various other lower grade clubs. He also wore the Big V (represented the state of Victoria) 13 times.

After his retirement from the V.F.L. (later the A.F.L.), he played and coached for various teams in Victoria and Tasmania, finally retiring in 1951 at the age of 58! A prodigious kick with either foot, he is yet another Hall of Famer.

Answer: Lionel Rose

Lionel Rose was born in 1948. He won the Australian amateur flyweight belt aged just 15 and won the world bantamweight boxing title in 1968 when he knocked out Fighting Harada in Japan. He lost the title the following year and retired in 1970. A couple of attempts at comebacks in 1975 and 1976 were not successful, and his life took a downturn prompted by alcohol abuse.

After a stint in jail, he worked for the Department of Aboriginal Affairs. A movie of his life 'Rose against the Odds' was released in 1991. Rose was named 'Australian of the Year' in 1968 and was awarded a Member of the British Empire (M.B.E.) soon afterwards.

Answer: He won a weight-lifting gold medal.

He was one of four gold medallists at Los Angeles - the others were Glynis Nunn, heptathlete, Jon Seiben in swimming and the 4000m team pursuit cycling team. Relatively unknown when he left for the Games, man-mountain Lukin hefted 240 kilograms over his head in the snatch section to defeat favourite Mario Martinez of the USA by 2.5 kilos. For his effort, he won the gold medal for the Super-Heavyweight division.

Answer: Sir Hubert Oppermann- cyclist

Sir Hubert was awarded the Gold Medal of Paris for his astounding feat of cycling the 1200 km (720 miles) from Paris to Brest and return in only 49 hours. He held over 100 distance cycling records and was Australian champion on four occasions. As a youth, he learned and developed his cycling skills and endurance from his job as a telegram delivery boy. Later in life, he held various portfolios in the Federal Government, and was Australia's first ambassador to Malta. 'Oppy' died in 1996, at the ripe old age of 91, fittingly from a heart attack suffered whilst he was using an exercise bike.

Answer: Edwin Flack

Flack was born in England, but migrated to Australia at a young age. However, he returned to London to study in 1895, the year before the first Olympics. A member of various athletic clubs in England, he journeyed to Athens by boat arriving only days before the Games were to begin.

Although weakened by sea-sickness, he competed in the 800 and 1500 metres events, winning both. A lovely story is told of the medal presentation ceremony that the Austrian anthem was played instead of the Australian anthem cannot be substantiated.

As Australia did not even exist as a country then (Federation did not occur until 1901), it is more likely that the British anthem would have been used. He also entered the marathon, despite having never attempted the 26 miles event before.

He actually led the race at the three-quarter way mark, but finally succumbed to fatigue and failed to finish. Flack also competed in singles and doubles tennis, placing third in the doubles event.

Answer: Mal Meninga

Meninga was a magnificent player for his club (Canberra Raiders) his state and his country. On his retirement he held numerous records including the most appearances for Queensland at 38, most points (188) and was captain 9 times. His international record is equally impressive and includes 45 caps (23 as captain).

He is also the only Australian to go on four Kangaroo tours, skippering on two of them. In 1986 he moved from Brisbane Souths and turned Canberra from a mediocre team to a champion team, winning the flag on 1989, 1990 and 1994. 1987 and 1988 were frustrating years for him when he broke his arms 4 times, however, he still played one Test and one International in that time.

His last game, a Test against France, saw him score the final try in yet another record- a 74-0 flogging.

His numerous awards include the Adidas Golden Boot Award for the Best Player in the World (1990), an Order of Australia in 1994 and elevation to the Hall of Fame in 2000. After expressing an interest in politics, he withdrew from the candidacy for the seat of Canberra, and instead took over the coaching role at the Raiders.

Answer: Walking

A product of the Australian Institute of Sport (A.I.S.), she represented New South Wales as a cross-country runner early in her career, before switching to walking. She collected medals at two World Championships, three Commonwealth Games (gold in 1990 and silver 8 years later), two Goodwill Games for yet another gold and silver, and a silver at the World Walking Cup on 1989.

She attended three Olympics with her best effort being a 7th in Sydney 2000 at the age of 39!. She became the first woman in history to break the 90-minute barrier for the 20 km walk, setting a mark of 1:29:40 in 1998. Kerry retired in 2001 and received the Australian Sportswoman of the Year in 1989 and 1990.

She was presented with the Order of Australia in 1992 for services to sport.

Answer: Mark Richards

Richards won a fifth world title in the Quicksilver Masters (for surfers over 44 years old) in 2001 at Bundoran, Ireland, defeating another legend, 'Rabbit' Bartholomew, in the final. The Mark Richards Pro event, part of the World Surfing circuit, was established in 1995, and attracts the cream of the world's surfers. With the truly original nickname of 'M.R.', he was a stylish surfer who earned the respect of his peers, and garnered a slew of awards in the early 1980's.

Answer: The only driver to win a Championship in a car of his own construction.

Jack Brabham won the Drivers championship in 1959, '60 and '66, and also won the Constructors championship in 1966 in his self-built {BT-19}- a unique achievement. He also won the Constructors title the following year with the BT-20 driven by Denny Hulme.

He started in 126 Grand Prix between 1955 and 1970, winning 14 and getting a podium finish on 17 other occasions. He was Australian of the Year in 1966, and was elevated to Sir Jack in 1979. The Brabham name remained associated with racing; his three sons all became professional drivers, and Jack will never lose the rev-head bug.

Answer: Frank Beaurepaire

Sir Frank shared in a 5,000 pound reward for his part in the rescue, and used the funds to launch the first of many Beaurepaires tyre outlets. He won a silver and bronze medal at each of the Olympics he attended- London (1908), Antwerp (1920) and Paris (1924).

He was appointed Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Victoria in 1941 and received a knighthood in the following year. In 1946, he was appointed president of the Victorian Olympic Council whose intent was to stage the 1956 Olympics in the Southern hemisphere for the first time.

History tells us that his work was not in vain, however he died a few months before the 'Friendly Games' were staged. Beaurepaire netted 35 Australian Championship titles in his career; a record that was only surpassed in 1999 by 'Madam Butterfly', Susie O'Neill.

The other three names given here were the remaining members of the 1924 Olympic relay team that won the Olympic silver in Paris.

Answer: Vicki Wilson

Vicki is also the first Australian to play in four World Championships, winning in 1991, 1995 and 1999. A product of the Government-funded Australian Institute of Sport (A.I.S.), she was appointed captain of the national team in 1996. A goal-shooter and holder of a host of scoring records, she started working with the Cancer Fund in her home state of Queensland in 1999.

Another athlete to be recognised by the Government for her contribution to Australian sport, Vicki was awarded the Order of Australia Medal in 1992.

Answer: Peter Thomson

Thomson was born in 1929 in Melbourne and won almost 60 tournaments over a period of 30 years (1949-1979). He is probably best known for winning the British Open on five occasions, including three in a row in 1954, '55 and '56. In partnership with Kel Nagle, he won the Canada Cup- now known as the World Cup- in 1954 and 1959.

After his retirement from professional golf, he ventured into course designing, and his creations can be found in such diverse places as Thailand, India, Scotland, Australia and Kenya.

Answer: Sir Donald Bradman

My vote as the best Australian sportsman of all time, Sir Donald died in February, 2001. His list of batting records is unlikely to be approached, far less equalled. His average of 99.94 runs surpasses the second-best by over 30 runs. Only a small man, he was selected to tour England in 1930, aged only 20, and plundered 974 runs in Test matches.

In the 1932-3 Ashes tour, the English devised 'Bodyline' to try to curb his scoring, and they partially succeeded, restricting Don's average to less than 60, and severely threatening the friendly ties between the two countries in the process. War interceded when Bradman was still in his prime, but it did not prevent him from touring as captain in 1948.

This team was arguably the best team ever and became known as 'The Invincibles'. 'The Don' retired after this tour, and in later years became somewhat of a recluse, however, he was held dear to the Australian public until his death. Sobers is a West Indian and Hadlee is from New Zealand.I hope you enjoyed playing my quiz as much as I enjoyed authoring it.