Canada in Beijing 2008 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Swimming

Ryan Cochrane, from Victoria, British Columbia, participated in two swimming events in Beijing. He won a bronze medal in the men's 1500 m freestyle race at the age of 19. This was the first swimming medal for a Canadian swimmer since Marianne Limpert's silver and Curtis Myden's two bronzes in Atlanta in 1996. It was the first Canadian medal in the 1500 m free since George Vernot won silver at Antwerp in 1920.

Cochrane went on to participate in two more Olympic games, winning a silver medal in the 1500 m freestyle in London in 2012, but failing to medal in Rio 2016. He announced his retirement in 2017.

Answer: Gymnastics

Toronto's Karen Cockburn was participating in her third Olympics in Beijing, having won an individual trampoline bronze medal in 2000 at Sydney, and a silver medal in the same event at Athens in 2004. She won silver again in Beijing, behind China's He Wenna.

For those who might have thought her sport should be listed as "Trampoline", Gymnastics at the 2008 Olympics was divided into Artistic, Rhythmic and Trampoline, with each division further broken down into individual and team events.

Answer: Weightlifting

Twenty-three year old Christine Girard, from White Rock, BC, was competing in her first Olympics at Beijing. She finished in fourth place in the 63 kg category, but receive a bronze medal eight years later, following the disqualification of the competitor who had originally been awarded the silver medal. In 2012 (London) she received a bronze medal in the same weight class, but stood to be elevated to gold once disqualification of those who finished above her were confirmed.

She was born in Elliot Lake, Ontario and has lived in Quebec and British Columbia, and has won medals at the Commonwealth Games and Pan-American Games as well as Olympic medals.

Answer: Diving

Emilie Heymans competed in four Olympic Games, beginning in Sydney 2000 and ending with London 2012, retiring the January after those Games. In Beijing she won the silver medal in the 10 m platform individual event, her first individual Olympic medal.

Her medals from the other three Olympics in which she took part were all synchronised diving events, with a different partner each time. Sydney brought a silver medal on the 10 m platform with synchro partner Anne Montminy, while Athens 2004 resulted in a bronze in the same event, but with Blythe Hartley. In London she and Jennifer Abel took home bronze for the synchronised 3 m springboard event. Heymans became the first Canadian to win medals in four consecutive Olympics.

Emilie was born in Brussels, Belgium, daughter of Olympic fencer Marie-Paule Van Eyck, who competed for Belgium in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. The family moved to Montreal, where Emilie was raised.

Answer: Wrestling

Carol Huynh claimed Canada's first gold medal in Beijing, defeating a Japanese wrestler to win the final of the 48 kg weight class in freestyle wrestling. She also became Canada's first ever female gold medallist in wrestling. She followed that with a bronze medal in London 2012, in the same weight class.

She was born in Hazelton, BC, to parents who were ethnic Chinese refugees from the northern part of Vietnam. She later moved to Calgary, Alberta to study at the University of Calgary.

Answer: Canoeing

Having won two medals, a gold (500 m) and a bronze (1000 m), at K-1 kayaking in Athens in 2004, van Koeverden was Canada's flag bearer at the closing ceremonies in Athens. He was subsequently chosen to carry the flag in the opening ceremonies in Beijing four years later, a rare honour to have bestowed twice. He won silver in the K-1 500 m race in Beijing in a photo finish with the third place kayak, and followed that in 2012 with a silver in the longer race in London.

He was born in Toronto, but went to school in Oakville, Ontario nearby, and his home canoe club was in that community. He graduated from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario the year before the Beijing Olympics.

Answer: Equestrian

Lamaze, riding the stallion Hickstead, won gold in Beijing in the individual jumping event, and silver in the team jumping event. The individual event was decided after a jump off between Lamaze on Hickstead and Sweden's Rolf-Goran Bengtsson riding Ninja.

The rest of the silver medal winning Canadian team consisted of Mac Cone on Ole, Jill Henselwood on Special Ed, and 61-year old Ian Millar aboard In Style.

Hickstead died in 2011, leaving Montreal-born Lamaze to ride a new mount in London, and little chance at the medals. He returned in 2016 with yet another horse, to win bronze in Rio.

Answer: Rowing

Belleville, Ontario native Brian Price was tiny compared to his eight teammates who won gold in Beijing in the Men's Eight competition. Price was the cox(swain) of the crew, standing only 5'4" tall due to childhood illness, the perfect size for a cox. His teammates were Kevin Light, Ben Rutledge, Jake Wetzel, Andrew Byrnes, Malcolm Howard, Dominic Sieterle, Adam Kreek and Kyle Hamilton.

In London in 2012, Price, Howard and Byrnes along with six new crew members, won the silver medal in the same event.

Answer: Taekwondo

Karine was one of only three Canadian participants in taekwondo at the Beijing games, along with Ivett Gonda and Sebastien Michaud. She was awarded a silver medal in the 67 kg weight class, losing her final match to an opponent from South Korea.

Born in Saint-Catherine, Quebec, Sergerie switched from karate to taekwondo, winning her first of multiple national championships in the latter sport in 2002.

Answer: Triathlon

Kingston, Ontario's Simon Whitfield burst onto the Olympic scene in 2000 at the Sydney Olympics, swimming, cycling and running from obscurity to win the inaugural Olympic triathlon. After finishing in eleventh place in the Athens 2004 event, he bounced back in Beijing to win silver.

He competed again in London in 2012, but was forced to retire after breaking his collarbone in a fall from his bike, during the cycling portion of the race. He retired from competition a year later.